/ 



STATEMEITS, 

SUPPORTED BY EVIDENCE, 



OB- 



WM. T. G. MORTON, M. D. 



CLAIM TO THE DISCOVERY 



OP THE 



ANESTHETIC PROPERTIES OF ETHER] 



SUBMITTED TO THE 



HONORABLE THE SELECT COMMITTEE APPOIN-TED BY THE SENATE OP 

THE UNITED STATES- 



32d Congress, 2d Session, January 21, 1853. 



Presented by Mr. DAvia, of Massaclmsetts, and referred to the Select Committee to 

whom had been referred the petition of sundry Physicians of Boston 

and vicinity, in support of the claim of W. T. G. Morton, M. D., 

for the discovery of Etherization. 



WASHINGTON 
iS53! 




ANALYTIC INDEX. 



I._Testimony showing that Dr. Morton had the idea of this dis- 
covery, and was wholly engrossed in its verification for months 
prior to September 30, 1846, when Dr. Jackson claims to have 
given him his first notion in that direction : — 

Page Page 

Dr. G. G. Hay den 193 Dr. Thomas R. Spear, Jr- - 219 

Richard H. Dana, Jr., Esq. 196 Francis Whitman, Esq.- - 221 

Francis Dana, Jr., Esq.--- 196 Theodore Metcalfe, Esq.- - 222 

Dr. Wm. P. Leavitt- -^— - - 196 Dr. Joseph M. Wightman 282 

Eben Frost, Esq. 257 B. B. Mussey, Esq. 257 

11. — Testimony showing that Dr. Jackson ridiculed this discovery 
while it was going through the experimentum cruets, and washed 
his hands of all responsibility, simply claiming that he said to Dr. 
Morton " Why don't yon try ether," an untested suggestion : — 

Page ■ Page 

Dr. A. A. Gould--- 265 Edward Warren, Esq. 442 

Caleb Eddy, Esq. - - - 286 Peleg W. Chandler, Esq. - 258 

Prof. J. D. Whitney 395 Joseph Burnett, Esq. 376 

III. — Testimony showing that even if Dr. Jackson's stat-ements to 
Humboldt were literally true, he had not only not made tW dis- 
covery in question, but was not entitled to a scientific induction 
from those premises that anaesthesia w^ould be produced. This, 
for two reasons. (1.) The nature of physiological science, which 
dees not admit of exact reasoning, \me mathematical, or even 
chemical, or mechanical science, and (2.) because the same ef- 
ects which he describes are produced by other agents which 
do not stand the test of surgical experiments. 

Mlso, Testimony of the surgeons of Boston and vicinity that 
Dr. Jackson had no connexion with any of the experiments at 
the hospital or in private practice, and that neither Dr. Warren, 
nor any one else connected with the hospital, knew or suspected 
that Dr. J. had any thing to do with the discovery until after 
the second experiment at the hospital. Embracing a direct de- 
nial from Dr. Warren that Dr. Jackson "requested" him to per- 
form the experiment, and full proof tliat the surgeons relied 
solely upon Dr. Morton and his dental experiments, not even 
knowing what they were administering, by Dr. Mortoii's direc- 



tion — Dr. Jackson not even attending an operation until two 
months after ether was first used. 



Page 

Dr. John C. Warren 301 

Dr. Henry J. Bigelow--- 319 

Dr. S. D^Townsend 355 

Dr. J. Mason Warren 386 

Dr. A. L. Peirson 456 



Page 

Majority report 35 

Memorial of physicians — 183 

Petition of trustees 190 

Testimony 191 

Debate in Senate 473 



IV. — Testimony showing a few of the many obstacles thrown in 
the way of Dr. Morton, in his endeavors to assert his rights, 
at home and abroad. 



Page 

R. H.Eddy, Esq. 397 

Harnden & Co. 6 

Ben. Perley Poore, Esq.-- 469 

Hon. Edward Stanly 548 

Hon. Truman Smith 10 

R, J . Burbank, Esq. 435 

N. C. Keep- 104 

J.L. Lord, Esq.-.^- 218 

Horace Cornwall, Esq. Ap. 121 

Joseph Burnett, Esq. 152 

B. F. Brooks, Esq. 152 

G. O.Barnes --292 



Compte Rendus --- 552 

New appointment 564 

Exclusive claim of prize- - 36 
Coalition - 472 

Destruction of bond 120 

Opposition to physicians- 121 

Jackson's abuse 121 

False translation 552 

Personal sacrifices 74 

Defeat of subscription 121 

Forestalling in Europe — 126 
Documents suppressed 08 



STATEMENTS, &c. 



Mr. Chairman Ais^D Gentlemen OF THE Committee: I ven- 
ture to address to you this hastily prepared communication, and 
to lay it before you in print, believing that it will aid you in a full 
and fair examiation of the subject with which you are charged, 
and thereby secure the ends of justice. Conscious of my right, 
my only anxiety is that you may thoroughl}^ acquaint yourselves 
with all the facts involved in the controversy. 

It is now more than six years since the world received, at my 
hands, what I may not scruple to call one of the greatest of 
physical blessings. Whatever attempts may be made to throw 
doubt upon other points in the case, no one has been reckless 
enough to deny that I alone have been, in fact, the humble in- 
strument through whom a beneficent Providence has conferred 
this boon upon mankind. Whatever floating notions may have 
crossed men's minds from the earliest ages, tending to the same 
end, it must be conceded that the world was no whit richer for 
them until it fell to my lot to devote all thj energies- and sacrifice 
all my means to its attainment. Now it is fully attained. What 
was the dream of the philanthropist and the half-formed conjec- 
ture of the scientific speculator, has become a household fact. 

To me alone, of all the world, this result has been fraught with 
suffering instead of comfort. Of pecuniary sacrifices I will not 
speak ; but surely it was not to have been anticipated that this 
discovery should have made me the target for the most malicious 
and envenomed assaults. There are wounds which are sharper 
than those of the surgeon's knife, and which 



" Not poppy, nor mandragora, 

Nor all the drowsy syrups of the world," 

can make us feel less keenly. These have been my portion. I 
trust that the reward is at hand. I look to you for justice : no- 
thing more, nothing less. 

My right is contested by two parties — Dr. C. T. Jackson, of 
Boston, and the representatives of Dr. Horace Wells, deceased, 
late of Hartford, Connecticut. 

As between Dr. Jackson and myself, there have been re- 
peated adjudications. I call them adjudications, because, al- 
though not the work of court and jury, they have all the quali- 
ties to give them equal authority. 

The report of the trustees of the Massachusetts General Hos- 
pital, giving the reiterated verdicts of an enlightened jury of the 



vicinage, acquainted with all the witnesses, and upon view of all 
the facts, have awarded the discovery to me. I respectfully ten- 
der to your committee copies of these reports herewith. 

The reports of two sticcessive committees of the House of Rep- 
resentatives, one of them after a thorough judicial examination, 
with the aid of counsel on both sides, have come to the same con- 
clusion. These reports, together with notes theieto, I beg leave 
also to lay before you herewith. 

Upon the last occasion, desirous of such an investigation as should 
forever satisfy all impartial minds, I voluntarily invoked the 
intervention of Dr. Jackson, and fully exhibited the claim of Dr. 
Wells as it then stood, notice having been given to Mr. Ingersoll 
for himself and Mr. Truman Smith, who had charge of Dr. Wells's 
interest. Since that time I have gone into Connecticut and called 
before a United States Commissioner every witness within my 
reach who was relied on in support of the Wells claim, or was 
supposed to know any facts concerning his alleged discovery, 
and have examined them fully. The result of these examinations 
is also laid before you herewith, in full copies of all the depositions 
duly certified. 

Before the committees of the House of Representatives, Dr. 
Jackson's oounsel produced an extract from the report of a Com- 
mittee of the French Academy, and quoted it (as Mr. Stanly's 
report does) as the language of the Academy, characterizing it 
as a definitive award of all the honor and originality to Dr. 
Jackson. ' 

I have now a full copy of the report of that Committee, and 
beg to submit a translation thereof made by the translator of the 
Stale Department, which will be found at page 567. 

From this it will be seen that the report of this Committee 
(p. 573) agrees that I had the preoccupatio7i of mind, the engross- 
ing' idea of this discovery or'^inally ; and that having the origi- 
nal idea, I " completed^' the discovery, which, without my *' auda- 
city" would probably have remained "fruitless and without 
effect" in Dr. Jackson's mind. 

Make the best of this conclusion for Dr. Jackson, and it 
amounts to no more than might probably be alleged for many 
others. It concedes to me equal original idea with Dr. Jackson, 
and the whole merit of " completing the discovery'^ — language 
which imports that " the discovery" had not been theretofore 
made. 

But the report assumes as its basis as to Dr. Jackson, the fol- 
lowing, viz : 

'•Mr. Jackson had observed that some persons on being exposed 
for a certain period of time to the action of etherial vapors were 
momentarily deprived of all sensibility. This is the physio- 
logical fact. Mr. Jackson established the fact hy trying the ex- 
periment upon himself." 



Now Dr. Jackson himself has never claimed (on thi^ side of 
the ocean) that he '^ had observed that some persons, '' &o., as 
above assumed. On the contrary, he claims to have been of suffi- 
ciently mighty mind to have reached this conclusion in 1842 by 
induction from effects produced on himself. The foundation, 
therefore, fails. No such fact existed. 

I beg attention to the page last cited, and submit to any legal 
mind the question whether, upon the very statement of that report 
itself, my priority of title would not be incontestible under our 
laws. 

In the same Compte Rendus, page 556, April 23, 1849, appears 
the following : 

'' M. Morton writes from Boston, dated the 16th of March, a 
letter concerning the question of priority for the discovery of the 
anaesthetic properties of ether. The author begs the Academy 
in the case they were disposed to pronounce upon this question, a 
wish that it should be made known to him in advance, so that he 
can come in person to sustain his rights before them. M. Mor- 
ton, after having noticed that the first experiments with this 
subject had been made at the hospital at Boston, announces that 
the administrators of this establishment, in their annual report for 
the year 1848, attribute to him formally the honor of the dis- 
covery. He adds, that the question having been brought before 
the Congress of the United States, the majority of the committee 
to which it had been submitted, have judged in the same sense." 

The Compte Rendus of the Aoademy (a copy of which is in 
the Smithsonian Institution) contains, under date of March 24, 
1848, thefollowmg: 

"M. Morton announced the sending of documents destined to 
establish in his favoc the priority relative to the discovery of the 
effect of the inhalation of the vapor of ether. The documents 

ANNOUNCED ARE NOT YET BEFORE THE AcADEMY. The letter of 

M. Morton was sent to be examined by the Commission upon 
ether and chloroform." 

Thus this report, so vaunted by Dr. Jackson, was made on his 
(Dr. J.'s.) ex parte showing. They had my memoir with a frag- 
ment of my testimony, but the bulk of my evidence never reached 
them. I was w^holly unknown to them — was depreciated be- 
fore them by Dr. Jackson's representations — while he was sup- 
ported by his friend M. Elie de Beaumont. See Mr. Poore\^ let- 
ter, p. 469. 

The facts will appear by the following : 

'^ On the olst oj January last the Institute of France awarded 
the ^ Cross of the Legion of Honor^ to Dr. Jackson as the discov- 
erer of of etherization. — Minority Report, JS'^o. 114, 20th Con- 
gress, 1S48-9, February 28." 



8 

The report was made in January, 1849. (See Minority Report* 
No. 114, September, 1848-9, H.R.) ^ P ^ 

I had written as follows : 

"If it is the intention of the Academy to pass upon this ques- 
tion, I trust that I shall receive notice thereof, that I may lay be- 
fore the Academy the evidence developed by the several investi- 
gations, and may be personally present. I have also some most 
material and recently discovered testimony not laid before the 
committee of Congress, or the trustees of the hospital, which I 
hope to have in form in season for your investigation." 

I never received any notice in reply, and the journal does not 
show that they ever intended to give me any. 

The report had already been made in January, 1849. ^See 
Minority Report, No. 114, uhi supra.) ' 

Now, at that time, even the evidence which I had forwarded 
had not reached them.* 

"Boston, March 14, 1849. 
" Dear Sir : By a letter received from our Paris agent while 
you were in Washington, we learn that your pamphlets, addressed 
to the French Academy and others, owing to a wrong impression, 
have not as yet been received. They remained at the French 
custom-house from May 6th to December 16th. The duties on 
them have now been paid, and they are in the hands of an agent 
at Paris awaiting your further instructions. Please give us your 
orders in season for transmitting per next steamer from Boston. 
"We remain yoar obedient servants, 

"HARNDEN & Co. 
"W. T. G. Morton, M. D." 

In this state of things, all that Dr. Jackson could procure, was 
suoh a report as we have seen. 

I return now to what has been stated, as to my having invari- 
ably introduced fairly and fully the claims of my adversaries on 
all occasions of investigation. And recently, I have proceeded 
to cite and examine witnesses before the U. S. Commissioner at 
Boston, in perpetuam ret memoriam, in the presence of Dr. 
Jackson's counsel, and with ample opportunity to him to detect 
error on my side and fortify his own. 

This testimony will be found most important and convincing, 
and is at p. 191. 

This has been my course : — open, bold, courting investigation, 
defying controversy. 

On the other hand, I refer you to the testimony of Horace 

* Dr. Morton also met with another misfortune. All his pamphlets consigBed 
for distribution to the principal journals and the chief surgeoDS acd men of sci- 
ence in Great Britain, got into the possession of a person who had heoome com- 
mitted and prejudiced against Dr. Morton, and they ATere suppressed. — Littell's 
Living Age, No. 201. 



Cornwall, Esq., the counsel employed by me in that proceeding, 
at page 121, Appendix. By this you will see — 

1st. That Dr. Ellsworth, one of the three principal witnesses 
relied on for Wells, is little else than the actual party concerned. 

2d. That under his direction the witnesses for Wells were with- 
drawn from cross-examination by my counsel, — were examined 
privately, under lock and key, — to keep them from the test of 
truth I — that even after they were so examined, my counsel was 
refused to see their testimony, and even their names withneld 
from him by direction of Dr. Ellsworth, acting avowedly as the 
agent for Wells's claim. 

I have a right, I think you will agree, thus to contrast my course 
with theirs, leaving you to draw your own conclusions from the 
facts. I forbear to make any commentary on them. I ask you 
only to read Mr. Cornwall's deposition, (p. 121 Appendix.) 

In like manner, on the preseiat occasion^ the same consciousness of 
right, and the same determination not to claim or receive any honor, 
reward, or payment, which shall not be clearly mj due, upon a 
full and impartial hearing of all sides, have induced me to collect 
together, and to print at my own expense, all that has ever ap- 
peared in the way of evidence in support of my opponents. 

My only alternatives were to subject myself to apparently in- 
terminable delay, or to the most unjust and unfounded imputation, 
(speech of Hon. Truman Smith, August 28, 1852, Cong. Globe,) 
heretofore made, of having proceeded and acted upon the con- 
sideration of my claim alone. The present session is rapidly 
passing away. The memorials of Boston surgeons, physicians 
and others, in my favor, were, I believe, the very first which 
were referred by the Senate. My evidence was promptly pre- 
sented and referred. After the lapse of nearly a month, and 
neither of my opponents having appeared, notice was given to 
Mr. Hayes, (counsel for Dr. Jackson,) and Hon. Truman Smith, 
(representing Mr. Wells,) to present their evidence, respectively, 
and have it referred to your committee. 

Time is still rapidly passing on. No such evidence has been 
presented by either of these parties. You will perceive at once, 
Mr. Chairman and gentlemen, that the strategy of my opponents 
is directed to wearing out my life, and exhausting my means, in 
order that they may be " in at the death.^' I am determined that, 
if Heaven spares my life, to complete this communication, to my 
wife and children at least, and to my name and memory, you shall 
have been the means of doing complete and impartial justice. 

I therefore submit to you herewith printed copies of two minority 
reports in favor of Dr. Jackson,* with all the evidence, rumors, 
hearsay, speculations, arguments and opinions, relied on in those 
reports to support his pretensions, with annotations. 

* See notes on pages 54?, 549 and 5G4. 



10 

I also submit printed copies of the two pamphlets published in 
favor of Dr. Wells, (the first by Wells himself, and the second 
written by the Hon. Isaac Toucey,) together with all the evidence, 
rumors, hearsay, speculations, arguments and opinions by which 
it is attempted to be sustained. This includes a document of 
one hundred and thirty-two pages. 

I invoke, and if I may be pardoned for the use of the language, 
I demand a fair and impartial examination of all these. At the 
last session of Congress, and just at its heel, a coalition between 
the Wells and Jackson claims suddenly interposed an unexpected 
difficulty in my w^ay. I will not deny that, under the circum.- 
stances, enough was said and done to throw doubt upon my right. 
Apprehending the repetition of this, as it seems to me very unfair 
course, I determined to submit my claim again to the most rigid 
judicial investigation, if that were considered necessary ; and if, 
on that basis. Congress would appropriate what it should deter- 
mine to be due to the discoverer, whoever he might prove to be^ 
Accordingly, the following projet of a bill was presented to the 
Hon. Truman Smith and to Mr. Hayes : 

AN ACT 

To reward, by a national testivionial, tJie discovery of the mea^is of producing 
insensibility to ■pain in surgical operations and other cases of niffering. 

Whereas a discovery has been made of the existence of anaesthetic qualities 
capable of being applied safiely and certainly, and with great utility, to produce 
entire insensibility to pain, and thus enabling surgical and obstetrical operations 
to be performed safely and without suffering, and of the application thereof: 
and whereas the government of the United States have had the benefit thereof 
in their military and naval service, and the free and common use by the public 
generally ; and whereas a judicial inquiry seems to be necessary to ascertain 
which of the three claimants hereinafter named is justly entitled to be rewarded 
for the discovery aforesaid, be it therefore enacted, &c., as follows . 

Sec. 1. That the sum of one hiaidred thousand dollars is appropriated in the 
hands of the Secretary of the Treasury, out of any moneys in the treasury not 
otherwise appropriated, as a remuneration for the use of the discovery aforesaid, 
to be paid by the Secretary of the Treasury to one of the claimants hereinafter 
mentioned, who shall, by legal and competent evidence in the proceedings here- 
inafter provided, establish his claim thereto, for and on account of the discovery 
aforesaid : Provided, That if W. T. G. Morton, hereinafter mentioned, shall be 
declared by final judgment in the proceedings hereinafter mentioned to be enti- 
tled to receive the fund hereby granted, he shall, before receiving the same, 
execute and deliver to the Commissioner of Patents, a surrender of the letters 
patent granted to him on the twelfth day of November, in the year eighteen 
hundred and forty-six. 

Sec. 2. That the district attorney of the United States for the district of Mas- 
sachusetts shall forthwith file in the Circuit Court of the United States for the 
district of Massachusetts, sitting in equity, in the name and in behalf of the 
Secretary of the Treasury, a bill of interpleader, therein reciting this" act as 
the substance thereof; the Secretary of the Treasury, as stakeholder of the fund 
hereby granted, shall be made complainant, and William T. G. Morton, of Bos- 
ton, in the State of Massachusetts, Charles T. .Jackson, of Boston, aforesaid, 
and the legal representative or represuntatives of Horace Wells, late of Hart- 
ford, in the State of Connecticut, deceased, shall respectively be made respond- 
ents, in which suit the said Morton and Jackson and the legal representative or 
representatives of t he said Wells shall litigate their respective claims to receive 



II 

the remuneration hereby granted for and on account of the discovery aforesaid. 
And the said Circuit Court is hereby authorized to take jurisdiction in the said 
cause and determine the question to whom the reward shall be paid, by refer- 
ence to the principles and analogies in which courts of equity having jurisdiction 
of patent rights and other equitable jurisdiction proceed, for which said court is 
authorized to make all necessary orders therein, and to make a final decree, 
declaring which of the said claimants is entitled to receive the said reward for 
and on account of the discovery aforesaid. And from the final decree of the 
said Circuit Court made in the premises, either of the other respondents may 
appeal to the Supreme Court of the United States, which appeal shall be taken, 
entered, prosecuted and disposed of like other appeals from the Circuit Courts 
in equity cases. 

Sec. 8. If either of the said respondents, after due notice and summons, shall 
fail to appear and put in an answer to said bill at the time that may be prescribed 
by the court, the court shall proceed and adjudicate upon the claim or claims of 
the other respondent or respondents who may have appeared and answered as 
aforesaid. 

M7\ Smith declined, on the ground that Mrs. Welis was unable 
to sustain the expense of litigation. I then, through Hon. E. T. 
Davis, Hon. Charles Chapman and E. March, esq., offered to Mr. 
Smith to advance to her in cash the means for such litigation, or 
to bear all the expense myself. This was declined. Mr. Hayes 
also declined. Can 1 give further proof of my fairness ? 

I am aware that a minority report in favor of Dr. Wells must, 
in the nature of things, come from your honorable committee. It 
is my misfortune to have for one of my judges an honorable sena- 
tor^ who, in the debate on the 28th August last, used the follow- 
ing language : 

'' I pledge whatever reputation I may have, that if the Senate 
will allow me, at the next session of Congress, an opportunity to 
be heard on this subject, I will make out a case for the family of 
Dr. Horace Wells, deceased. If the subject shall then be referred 
to the judgment of a committee of this body, I will be prepared 
to make out a case worthy the most grave and serious considera- 
tion. * * ^- I denounce tl.is attempt to filch money frcm the 
treasury as an outrage upon the rights of others,, and a most 
abominable imposition on this Government. I believe that this 
Morton is a rank impostor — that there is no justice or truth in 
his preteded claim. I demand, in the name of justice and right, 
to have an opportunity to come before the Senate and tell the 
story of the wrongs of the poor widow and defenceless children 
of Dr. Horace Wells — wrongs which they have suffered at the 
hands of this man Morton, who has attempted to rob their hus- 
band and father, who has descended to the grave, of a discovery 
which is one of the most extraordinary made in modern times." 

It is scarcely to be expected of human nature that, '* though 

* Deposition of H. Cornwall, Esq., p. 121, Appendix. « The Hon. Senator 
demands an oppominity of making out a ca.-^e—for whom ? For clients of his.'* 
Speech of Hon. Geo. JE. Badger, in Senate, Aug. 28, 1852, Co7ig. Globe. 



12 

one should come from the grave" to testify, such foregone con- 
clusions can be removed. 

I proceed now to bring to your notice such views and such 
facts as appear to me essential to the attainment of truth. 

And first, I remark, that my claim upon the Government rests 
in the first place, on a strict legal title. I hold the patent of the 
United States. Six years have elapsed, and no bill has been filed 
or other proceeding taken, to invalidate the patent. The Govern- 
ment of the United States have used, and continue to use, in the 
army and navy, the discovery which by its patent it has solemnly 
declared 1o be my property, and this without any compensa- 
tion. The whole people of the United States have in like man- 
ner used it, without compensation to me. 

Next, it is to be observed that of the two parties now contest- 
ing my right, one of them (Dr. Jackson) has formally and sol- 
emnly released to me all his interest and claim in the premises ; 
and the other (Wells) does not claim, but depreciates and con- 
demns the agent (sulphuric ether) v/hich is used by the Govern- 
ment and people of the United States. He claims that nitrous 
oxide gas in the true agent discovered by him. 

This agent never was, nor can it ever be, of any value. The 
idea of u^ng it is as old at least as Davy and Beddoes, and tLe 
practical verification of it has never to this day been made. Here, 
then is neither original conception, nor verification for practical 
use. 

On this point I beg leave to reproduce here the following letter : 

" National Hotel, 
*' Washington, January 18, 1853. 

** Deae. Sir : The subject of the discovery of ansesthesia being 
now before a committee of which you are chairman, I beg leave 
to submit to you, and through you to the committee, a propo- 
sition . 

** One of those who contest my right to the discovery, does so 
on the ground that aneesthesia had been discovered by Dr. Wells 
prior to my alleged discovery; and that the anaesthetic agent 
used in the discovery by Dr. Wells was nitrous oxide gas. Now, 
if aneesthesia, for surgical purposes, was ever discovered through 
nitrous oxide gas as the agent, that agent, for the same purposes, 
will still manifest its efficiency. I deny that such a discovery, 
by means of said agent, ever was made, or that said agent pos- 
sesses available anaesthetic properties alone for surgical opera- 
tions. At the same time, I assert and claim that aneesthesia was 
first discovered by me, through the agency of sulphuric ether. 
Therefore, to prove that nitrous oxide neyer was discovered to 
be an available ansesthetic agent in surgical operations, and that 
it is not such now ; and to prove also that sulphuric ether was 
discovered to be an available anaesthetic agent for such purposes, 



13 

and is so now, I propose that an actual demonstration shall be 
made before the committee of the two agents, in such surgical 
operation or operations as are considered fair tests by scientific 
men, at such time as the committee may direct and patients ob- 
tained . 

'' Yours, very truly, 

^^W. T. G. MORTON, M. D/'^ 
" Hon. J. P. Walker, Chairman,'^ ^c. 

Again: The legal vested right which I hold is not liable to be 
impaired or divested by any legislation. 

These views premised, and repeating the reference to the 
reports and evidence touching Dr. Jackson's claim, let the facts 
concerning Dr. Wells's pretensions be calmly and impartially 
reviewed. I beg the committee to bear in mind, that what I aim 
at throughout this paper, is such a review of the case as an im- 
partial judge would make. Of course, I am aware, that in my 
position, I can hardly attain this aim : but I wish to call attention 
to the fact, that the points I make might be much more strongly 
urged in the way of mere partisan defence or attack. 

Upon the claim of Dr. Wells, the report of the Select Com- 
mittee of the House of Representatives of the last session, remarks 
as follows : 

'' The claim in behalf of Dr. Wells rests on his experiments 
with nitrous oxide, referred to by your committee in the early part 
of their report. He had the merit of attempting to carry out 
practically the idea suggested by Sir Humphrey Davy, of rendering, 
by its influence, a patient insensible to pain in a surgical operation. 
He has also undoubtedly the merit of having contributed some- 
thing in directing the mind of Dr. Morton to the subject, and 
thus aided in conferring this great boon upon mankind. Origi- 
nally he did not claim for himself the honor of the discovery, but 
merely of the attempt, which he admitted to have been fruitless. 

* After this document was in type, the above proposition was accepted by the 
committee, and the demonstration, so far as ether was concerned, took place at 
the infirmary of this city, this morning, January 28, 1853. 

Apprehensive that it might be said that the nitrous oxide gas could not be 
procured, I caused it to be mauufacturrd by a compentent chemist, (recom- 
mended by the Professor of the Columbian College,) and further to satisfy the 
surgeon selected by the committee, (Dr. May,) of its purity, I administered it 
to several persons on the evening of Janusry 27, in his presence, and that of 
several senators. 

To-day, at the infirmary, we had a patient and the nitrous oxide gas and ap- 
paratus in readiness. Dr. May was urged by the chairman of the committee to 
use the nitrous oxide. He refused peremtorily. He had also been requested 
by Mr. Trueman Smith, and had refused. I then proceeded, in presence of the 
committee, and of surgeons of the army and navy, and the medical class, toad- 
minister the ether. Complete etherization was soon produced, which continued 
through a dangerous and protracted surgical operation, lasting about three 
quarters of an hour. 

W. T. G. M. 



14 

'^ The letter of Dr. Morton announcing his discovery and the 
reply of Dr. Wells, together with the letter of R. H. Eddy, 
dated February 17, 1847, prove this. They are as follows : 



iii\ 



"^Boston, Octoher 19, 1846. 
•Friend Wells — Dear Sir : I write to inform you that I 
have discovered a preparation, by inhaling which, a person is 
thrown into sound sleep. The time required to produce sleep is 
only a few moments, and the time in which persons remain asleep 
can be regulated at pleasure. While in this state the severest 
surgical or dental operations my be performed, the patient not ex- 
periencing the slightest pain. I have perfected it, and am now 
about sending out agents to dispose of the right to use it. I will 
dispose of a right to an individual to use it in his own practice 
alone, or for a town, county, or State. My object in writing to 
you is to know if you would like to visit New York and the other 
cities, and dispose of rights upon shares. I have used the com- 
pound in more than one hundred and sixty cases in extracting 
teeth, and I have been invited to administer to patients in the 
Massachusetts General Hospital, and have succeeded in every 
case. 

" ^The Professors, Warren and Hay ward, have given me written 
certificates to this effect. I have administered it at the hospital in 
the presence of the students and physicians — the room for opera- 
tions being as full as possible. For further particulars I will refer 
you to extracts from the daily journals of this city, which I for- 
ward to you.' 

" ^Respectfully yours, 

**^WM. T. G. MORTON.' 

** * Hartford, Connecticut, October 20, 1846. 
*^ ' Dr. Morton — Dear Sir : Your letter, dated yesterday, is just 
received, and I hasten to answer it, for fear you will adopt a method 
in disposing of your rights, which will defeat your object. Before 
you make any arrangements whatever, I wish to see you. I think 
I will be in Boston the first of next week — ^probably Monday night. 
If the operation of administering the gas is not attended with too 

much trouble, and will produce the effect you state, it will, un- 
doubtedly, be a fortune to you, provided it is rightly managed. 

" * Yours, in haste, 

•* • H. WELLS.' 

'' * Boston, February 17, 1847. 
** 'Dear Sir: In reply to your note of this morning, I have to 
state that about the time I was engaged in preparing the papers 
for the procural of the patent in the United States, on the discov- 



15 

ery of Dr. Morton, for preventing pain in surgical operations by 
the inhalation of the vapor of sulphuric ether, I was requested by 
Dr. Morton to call at his office to have an interview with the late 
Dr. Horace Wells, who was then on a visit to this city, and who 
Dr. Morton thought might be able to render him valuable advice 
and assistance in regard to the mode of disposing of privile£;es to 
use the discovery. Accordingly I had an interview with Dr. 
Wells. During such meeting we conversed freely on the discov- 
ery and in relation to the experiments Dr. Wells had been witness 
to in the office of Dr. Morton. The details of our conversation I 
do not recollect sufficiently to attempt to relate them, but the 
whole of it, and the manner of Dr. Wells at the time, led me, in 
no respect, to any suspicion that he (Dr. Wells) had ever before 
been aware of the then discovered effect of ether in annulling 
pain during a surgical operation. Dr. Wells doubted the ability 
of Dr. Morton to procure a patent, not on the ground that he (Dr. 
Morton) was not the first and original discoverer, but that he (Dr. 
Wells) believed the discovery was not a legal subject for a patent. 
He advised him, however, t« make application for one, and to dis- 
pose of as many licenses as he could while such application might 
be pending ; in fact, to make as much money out of the discovery 
as he could while the excitement in regard to it might last. I 
must confess that when, some time afterwards, I heard of the pre- 
tensions of Dr. Wells to be considered the discoverer of the afore- 
mentioned effect of ether, I was struck with great surprise, foi' 
his whole conversation with me at the time of our interview, led 
me to the belief that he fully and entirely recognized the discov- 
ery to have been made by Dr. Morton, or at least partly by him 
and partly by Dr. C. T. Jackson, as 1 then supposed. 
" 'Respectfully yours, 

" 'R. H. EDDY.' 
" 'R. H. Dana, Esq.' 

'* The evidence presented with Dr. Wells's claim shows that 
dental operations were in several instances performed without 
pain by Dr. Wells, under the influence of nitrous oxide, which 
had been before known in some cases to produce a total or partial 
asphyxia. It appears, also, that the vapor of sulphuric ether 
was thought of, discussed, and finally rejected by him — while 
the total abandonment of the use of nitrous oxide, and, indeed, 
of every other agent, shows that Dr. Wells's experiments were, 
on the whole, unsuccessful. He engaged in the search and failed 
to find the object of his pursuit. He attempted and endeavored 
assiduously to carry out the idea to practical results, but was not 
successful. There was great merit in the effort, but it proved a 
failure. 

^' Dr. Weils, therefore, in the opinion of your committee, is not 
entitled to the honor of the discovery. He stopped half way in 



16 

the pursuit. He had the great idea of producing insensibility to 
pain, but he did not verify it by successful experiments. He mis- 
took the means, and he unfortunately rejected the true anaesthe- 
tic agent as dangerous to life, and therefore did not make the dis- 
covery and give it to mankind. He did what Dr. Beddoes, Sir 
Humphrey Davy, and Dr. Townsend had done about the close of 
the last century, but nothing more. 

"But he had the signal merit of reviving the investigation, 
and, probably, of hastening the discovery. If an idea connected 
with the subject lay dormant in the mind of any one, his attempt 
was well calculated to aw^aken it into life. When in the fall of 
3844, he made his public attempt, in Boston, to produce anaesthe- 
sia during a dental operation, by the use of nitrous oxide, if Dr. 
Jackson had indeed made and perfected this discovery, and felt 
an abiding confidence in its truth, who can doubt that he would 
have availed himself of that occasion, or have been reminded by 
it, to make for himself another, at an early day, of publicly ex- 
hibiting and testing the true anaesthetic agent ?" 

]f the facts assumed and stated in this extract are truly and cor- 
rectly stated, and there are no other facts controlling their rational 
and legitimate effect ; and if the merit of Dr. Wells be limited to a 
speculative idea, that some safe and practical agent might be dis- 
covered to produce insensibility under surgical operations, it could 
hardly be contended that such idea was either original, or of any 
value so long as it remained e mere speculation. 

If that speculation, and his experiments thereupon, were con- 
fined to the nitrous oxyde gas,* and if these experiments were on 
the whole unsuccessful, and the whole subject was totally aban- 
doned by him without verifying his idea or arriving at any useful 
conclusions in support of it, it is equally clear that he has no 
further merit than that of contributing to direct the public mind 
in the same track, and thereby increasing the chances that such a 
discovery should be made. But it remains to inquire, whether 
this be in fact the whole case made for Dr. Wells : and if any 
other or different case be made out by the evidence, what is its 
true claim, if any, upon the justice or bounty of Congress, 

The claim itself, as set forth by the mem^orial of William W. 
Ellsworth and others, is, that '• to him (Wells) and to him alone 
is the honor and award due.^^ 

* Since this document went to press, positive testimony has been received 
from Professor George Hay ward, M. D,, that he asked Dr. Wells, after his return 
from Europe, " If he had ever used sulphuric ether by inhalation, so as to render 
any one insensible to- pain, and performed any surgical operation on the indi- 
vidual while in that state ? The answer was : ' That he had not.' " 

Professor Hayward's deposition unfortunately arrived too late for insertion in 
this work, but will be submitted to the committee. 



17 

This exclusive claim is based upon an alleged discovery " in 
the autumn of 1844;" a discovery which is now alleged to have 
established the great fact, that complete insensibility under sur- 
gical operations might be produced at will, safely and certainly, 
by the inhalation of anaesthetic agents. Upon this subject, of 
what constitutes the discovery, the printed argument in support 
of Dr. Wells's claim was in this language : (pp. 1 and 2,) ^'Dis- 
covery hy the late Dr. Horace Wells, ^c. Hartford : Elisha 
GeeVf Stationer and Printer. 1852." 

''If the mere conception of an idea, without subjecting it to the 
* test of experiment, be what is meant, then the inquiry, like all 
"^ others about abstract ideas floating loosely on men's minds, would 
' be a very different one, and not worth preserving. If a mere 
' theoretical opinion, more or less confidently entertained, or per- 
' haps expressed, be all that is intended, the inquiry would be 
' neither less ditlicult nor of any more value. But if by discovery 
' in this case, be meant the first practical successful application of 
' some one or more of a class of agents to the purpose of producing 
' insen'iibility to pain under surgical operations, with safety to the 
'subject of the7n, it will not be difficult to arrive," &c., &c. 

The discovery claimed, according to this view taken for Dr. 
Wells, is the ascertainment of the fact that some one or more of a 
class of agents v/ould produce insensibility to pain under surgical 
operations, with safety to the subject of them. 

In order to make this discovery valuable, it must be conceded 
(and is supposed to be implied in the passage quoted) that the 
proposed effect must be thereby ascertained to be produced with 
certainty and safety, and la ali cases, unless, of course, the ex- 
ceptions be mere exceptions proving the rule. 

The proposition also implies that the discovery is of a prin- 
ciple, extending through a class of agents, leaving the choice 
among them to be regulated by minor considerations and by con- 
venience. 

Admitting this proposition to be correct, argumeuti gratia 
the question then, arises, Wh*ether in fact Dr. Wells made such 
discovery prior to. the undersigned ? 

The first and most striking fact which arises upon this ques- 
tion, is the correspondence between the undersigned and Dr> 
Wells of October 19 and 20, 1846. 

The authenticity of this correspondence is proven by the testi- 
mony of the honorable James Dixon, (Appendix p. 32,) that gen- 
tleman having been one of the signers of the memorial of Ells- 
worth et al., before referred to, and having been recently examined 
with others who had signed it, for the purpose of ascertaining 
their knowledge of the facts involved in the controversy. Mr. 
Dixon (Appendix, page 32) testifies that, having seen the cor- 



18 

respondence published among Dr. Morton's papers, he applied to 
Dr. Wells for an explanation of it. That explanation will "be 
found in the testimony of Mr. Dixon, and may be disposed of 
with the remark that it is evidently unsatisfactory on the face of 
it. The point for which that testimony is now referred to, is 
simply to show that Dr. Wells admitted the genuineness of the 
correspondence as hereinbefore quoted from the House report. 

How, then, can the letter of Dr. Wells of October 20, 1846, 
be reconciled with the pretensions now put forth for him ? 

The letter of the undersigned, to which it is a reply, distinctly 
claims as his discovery (then recently made) the very fact which, 
on behalf of Dr. Wells, as before quoted, is claimed to be the 
whole discovery — and the only discovery of any worth or value — • 
viz : the fact of the actual effective application of some one or 
more of a class of agents to the purpose of producing insensi- 
bility to pain, under surgical operations, with safety to the sub- 
ject of them. 

According to the proposition on behalf of Wells, {and Ms 
■whole case depends absolutely iipon its admission,) the particular 
agent used is unimportant to the discovery — the discovery being 
the truth that such insensibility was produced by one or more 
agents of a class of agents. But it is simply the result — the 
fact of insensibility to pain — which the undersigned claims in 
that letter to have discovered, as producible by something which 
he does not describe or disclose. 

Can it be disputed that this was a direct claim advanced by 
the undersigned to Dr. Wells himself, of the whole body of the 
discovery which is now claimed for Wells? And can it be 
doubted that if that discovery, or anything like it, was then the 
property of Wells, his reply must have referred to it, if it did 
not effectually guard his right ? Is it possible to reconcile the 
claim set up for Wells with the reply made by him to the under- 
signed's communication? So far from indicating or suggesting 
that any prior discovery had been made by him of the great fact 
in question, he hastens to congfratulate the undersis-ned on his 
discovery, and says: "7f the operation of administering the gas 
is not attended with too much trouble, and will produce the 
EFFECT YOU STATE, it ivill Undoubtedly be a fortune to you, pro- 
vided it is rightly managed.'' He proposes to see and advise the 
undersigned as to the method of disposing of his "rights." The 
testimony of Mr. Eddy covers the interview thus proposed, and 
is wholly inconsistent with the present pretensions of this party. 
It would require a greater amount of proof than is ordinarily 
within the power of parties to do away with a fact like this. 

Standing alone, it is a clear admission that at the date of that 
letter, viz : October 20, 1846, Dr. V/ells had made no discovery 



19 

which, with all the partiality of the discoverer himself, he could 
claim or pretend to be eqiiiTalent to the discovery which the un- 
dersigned announced to him by his letter of the 18th of the same 
month. 

Again : It is claimed for Dr. Wells that this very discovery 
was communicated by him (Wells) to the undersigned. Is this 
reconcilable with the letter of the undersigned addressed to 
him in such terms, and immediately after the complete verifica- 
tion of the fact of anaesthesia by inhalation of ether. Upon 
ordinary rules and principles of human action, the conduct of 
neither party at this juncture is reconcilable with the case set up 
for Wells. 

The next fact, which is not to be disputed, and which is highly 
significant, is that, notwithstanding the alleged discovery by 
Dr. Wells " in the autumn of 1844," the same discovery took 
the world by surprise in the autumn of 1846, and immediately 
assumed its gigantic shape and importance in the eyes of huma- 
nity. The forcible reasoning of the House report, upon a similar 
fact in the case of Dr. Jackson, applies here also. It is unneces- 
sary to do more than refer to those remarks in this connexion. 

The testimony in relation to the claim of Wells may be best 
considered by distributing it according to its applicability to 
several cardinal points, viz : 

1st. The facts and circumstances attending his alleged dis- 
covery and experiments, from its conceptien down to his visit tO' 
Boston on that business. 

2d. The facts attending that visit and his return therefrom. 

3d. The facts bearing upon the question w^hether he then aban- 
doning his theory as unsound and of no practical value, leaving 
the question of ansesthesia in substantially the same condition as 
he had found it. 

In the publication made by Wells himself, under date of 
March 30, 1847, {''History of the discovery of the apjAication of 
nitrous oxide gus^ ether and other vapors to surgical operations, 
by Horace Wells: Hart pro J. Q-aylord Welles, 1847," p. 5,) 
he says: -'Reasoning from analogy I was led to believe that 
surgical operations might be performed without pain, by the fact 
that an individual when much excited from ordinary causes, may 
receive severe wounds without even feeling the least pain ; as, 
for instance, the man who is engaged in combat may have a limb 
severed from his body, after which he testifies that it was attended 
with no pain at the time ; and so the man who is intoxicated with 
spirituous liquor may be severely beaten without his even feehno^ 
pain, and his frame in this state seems to be more tenacious of 
life than under ordinary circumstances. By these fliers I was led 
to inquire if the same result would not follow by tlie inhalation 



20 

of exhilarating gas, the effects of which would pass off immedi- 
atelj, leaving the system none the worse for its use. I accordingly 
produced some nitrous oxide gas, resohdng to make the first ex- 
periment on myself, by having a tooth extracted, which was done 
without any painful resolutions. I then performed the same 
operation for twelve or fifteen others with the like success. This 
was in the fall of 184-i. Being a resident of Hartford, Connec- 
ticut. I proceeded to Boston in December, to present my discovery 
to the medical faculty," &:c. &;c. 

Appendix page 90 is the affidavit, ^o. 1, of John M. Biggs, 
whose subsequent affidavits will be hereafter noticed. 

In No. 1, this witness says: "On or about the 1st of Novem- 
ber, 1844, I was consulted by Horace Wells, surgeon dentist, of 
this city, county and State aforesaid, as to the practicability of ad- 
ministering nitrous oxide gas prior to the performance of dental 
or sui'gical op?rations. Thinking favorably of the suggestion, it 
was decided to make trial of the gas in question; and the day 
follcvring, per agreement, the protoxide of nitrogen was adminis- 
tered to Horace Wells, aforesaid, at his request ; and I extracted 
one of his superior molar teeth; he manifesting no signs of suf- 
fering, and stating that he felt no pain during the operation. 

In his deposition No. 2, (Appendix page 91,) he says : " I, 
John M. Biggs, kc, &c., do depose and say, that during 
the months of Novemher and December^ 1844, I made use of 
the inhalation of nitrous oxide gas, both alone and in connexion 
^-ith Dr. Wells, for the prevention of pain during the extrac- 
tion of teeth. I declare that these experiments were repeated 
during these two months not less than twenty times, more or 
less.'' 

By the depositions of Samuel A. Cooley, forwarded to Hon. 
€harles Chapman, (Appendix, p. 1), on behalf of Mr. Wells, and 
by the subsequent examination of the witness. Biggs, (Appendix, 
p. 94) under citation from the United States Commissioner, it 
clearly appears that the facts attending this alleged discovery 
were as follows : 

On the 10th of December, 1844, a person named Colton (Appen- 
dix, p. 127,) gave an exhibition in the city of Hartford, to show the 
common and well known effects of the nitrous oxide or "'laughing 
gas." On the next day (December 11.) he gave a private exhibition 
at which the witness, (Cooley.) Wells and others were present. 
Cooley, (Appendix, p. 1,) while under the influence of the gas, 
bruised his shins, without being sensible of it. He, Cooley, says 
when made aware of this fact he remarked that he believed a man 
might get into a fight with several and not know he was hiu't ; and 
that "if a person could be restrained, that he oould undergo a 
severe surgical operation without feeling any pain at the time." 



21 

That Wells then remarked 'Hhat he (Wells) believed that a person 
could have a tooth extracted while under its influence, and not ex- 
perience any pain," and " that he (Wells) had a wisdom tooth that 
troubled him exceedingly, and if said G. Q. Colton would fill Ms 
bag with some of the gas, he could go up to his office and try the 
experiment," which said Colton did, and the said Wells, G. Q. Col- 
ton and your deponent and others, at this time unknown to de- 
ponent, proceeded to the office of said Wells, and that said 
Wells there inhaled the gas, and a tooth was extracted by Dr. 
Riggs, a dentist there present," &c., &c. 

It cannot escape animadversion that this account differs from 
that of Wells, and of Riggs in his two ex parte depositions. Not 
only does it appear that the positive and reiterated statements by 
Wells and Riggs as to the month of November is incorrect, but 
that the facts and circumstances with regard to Colton's exhibi- 
tion and the drawing of Wells's tooth immediately thereafter 
were suppressed, obviously, it would seem, for the purpose of 
putting a new face and color upon the transaction by the alleged 
idea and speculation of Wells. 

The fact is not doubted that Wells had his tooth drawn ; nor 
is it doubted that he attempted to extract teeth for others. In 
his own publication, (before cited,) he states at page 6, that prior 
to his visit to Boston in December, 1844, he had done so, and 
that '''with one or tivo exceptions, all on whom I (Wells) had 
operated, numbering twelve or fifteen, assured me that they expe- 
rienced no pain whatever.'' The number of operations thus per- 
formed, does not appear satisfactorily ; but it is to be presumed 
that Wells himself has stated it as strongly as the truth would 
allow, and of the number operated on by him, he admits that 
there were one or two who suffered pain. (Appendix, p. 10.) 

In this state of things he proceeded to Boston. 

He states that, by the invitation of Dr. Warren, he addressed 
the medical class en the subject; and at pp. 6 and 7 he details 
his argument then used, and which certainly was not calculated 
to make a favorable impression on scientific minds. He also fully 
admits the failure of his experiment then to dravf a tooth with- 
out pain ; though he refers this failure to the premature with- 
drawal of the patient for the operation of the gas. 

Let us now inquire what was the result of this failure. 

Taking even Wells's own account of what he had theretofore 
accoraplished, the mind is quite prepared for what followed. On 
this subject, the testimony of Cooley, (Appendix, p. 5,) Olni- 
stead, (Appendix, p. 12,) Brinley, (Appendix, p. 20,) Bolles. 
(Appendix, p. 14,) is conclusive. 

Cooley states that a verbal arrangement had been entered into 
between him and Wells, immediately after the experiment of the 



22 

11th December, 1844, in tlie nature of a partnership in the mat- 
ter of drawing teeth without pain. In his answer to the sixth 
interrogatory, he says : " The first intimation I had that Dr. 
Wells did not intend to carry out the partnership arrangement 
with me, was when he informed me, several weeks after this ar- 
rangement was entered into between us, that he had just returned 
from Boston, where he had made a public experiment which had 
proved, a failure. He then said to me that he was disappointed 
in the effects of the gas ; and that it would not operate as we had 
hoped and thought it would, as there was no certainty to he 
jolaced up)on it, and, consequently he should abandon it, as he 
had so much orher business to attend to ; and, as the gas would 
not operate in all cases alike, and therefore would not be trusted, 

HE ADVISED ME TO GO ON WITH MY EXHIBITIONS, and thought I 

could make money out of them ; and that, although he had got 
through with his experiments in the business, he would assist me 
in any way he could, in order that I might succeed with my lec- 
tures, and administering the gas, mesmerism, and the use of a 
card of questions which he had prepared, so arranged that a cor- 
rect answer could be given by a person in the adjoining room." 
Cooley further says, in his answer to the ninth interrogatory, 
(Appendix, p. 5,) " I know of Dr. Wells going to Boston, soon 
after the noise in the papers of the discovery of the effects of 
«ther by you, in 1846, and had a conversation with him, on his 
return, about your discovery. He made no claim to me of the 
discovery being ours, hut, on the contrary, expressed regrets that 
we had not continued our experiments to a successful termina- 
tion.'' In his answer to the tenth he says, "2 discovered no ma- 
terial change in the health of Dr. Wells, after his return from 
Boston, in January, 1845, and he followed his professional busi- 
ness the same as usual, until early in the spring, when he com- 
menced getting up a panorama, or exhibition of natural history ; 
and that he exhibited for some time in the City Hotel in this city.'' 

The testimony of Bolles, Olmstead, and Brinley will be 
found to confirm the witness Cooley, in the material points, and 
in ail respects when their knowledge extends to the same or 
similar particulars. 

If any coniirmation were needed for this evidence, it is abun- 
dantly supplied by the fact, at once public, notorious, and of 
contralling significance, that from the period of Wells's unsuccess- 
ful demonstrations at Boston, until after the discovery by the un- 
dersigned, nothing whatever w^as heard of the supposed discovery, 
so full of comfort and relief from suffering to the minds and 
hearts, as well as to the bodies of men — for it can scarcely be 
considered a greater boon to. the physical sufferers themselves 
than it is to all those whom the ties of blood and nature have so 
united w^itH them, as to produce the most exquisite sympathy in 



23 

pain or pleasure. Father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, 
brother, or sister, are words which it is enough to pronounce in 
this connexion, to prove the justness of this language. 

It would require very strong proof to countervail the single 
consideration presented in the last paragraph. But the fact is 
undoubtedly as stated ; and the suggestions, on the part of Dr. 
Wells, to account for it can produce no impression on any impartial 
mind. It is abundantly clear from the evidence, that Wells had 
means, health and energy enough to devote himself to other pur- 
suits during this period. Nor is there any ground for the insinua- 
tion (very much out of place in the testimony of a witness) which 
is found in the affidavit of the witness Riggs {at page 27 of the 
Wells pamphlet, 1852,) to the effect that Wells failed at Hartford, 
for lack of a hospital, ^^ or ample surgical facilities which Boston 
possesses ;"" and that he was foiled at Boston, because ^Hts array 
of surgeons, its hospitals, its medical and other journals were all 
eager to secure the credit of the discovery to the Athens of 
America," as that city is sneeringly called by the witness. In the 
same exceptionable tone (very much calculated before any court 
or jury to deprive their testimony of the weight which belongs to 
that of every impartial and credible witness) are the affidavits of 
the other witnesses mainly relied on in support of Wells's claim, 
(viz : Drs. Marcy and Ellsworth,) which will be particularly noticed 
hereafter. It is remarkable, in this connection, that Dr. Wells 
shows that he had access to the very theatre where the under- 
signed demonstrated this discovery, and that he was by Dr. J. C. 
Warren (who afterwards hailed the discovery of the undersigned 
as a blessing to humanity,) received two years before with equal 
candor. Without pursuing this point further, it may be safely con- 
cluded, with a general reference to the evidence, that Wells hav- 
ing become satisfied by his signal failure at Boston, that his notion 
of intoxicating the patient, and by his excitement, making him 
insensible to pain, was neither safe nor certain in its practical 
operation, abandoned it entirely, and left the matter substantially 
where he found it on fc occasion when Cooley bruised his shins, 
and like a drunken man was unconscious to pain in his exhilara- 
tion. 

No one who is familiar with the evidence in this whole contro- 
versy can doubt that so far as Wells is concerned, the world at 
this moment, with reference to this important and most interesting 
discovery, would be just where it was half a century ago with the 
suggestions of Sir Humphrey Davy as to the effect of nitrous oxide 
gas, but for the undersigned. 

This claim has been shouldered by the municipal council of 
Hartford, by sundry physicians of that place, and by the legisla- 
ture of Connecticut. 

It is to be remarked that neither of these bodies acting together, 
profess to have any personal knowledge of any fact goirg to 



24 

establish the right in controversy. Neither can it escape observa-- 
tion that such proceedings, not preceded by any deliberate exam- 
ination of facts, are entitled to very little weight, however re- 
spectable or authoritative the sources from which they emanate. 

It appears from the proceedings before the House committee, 
that on that occasion the undersigned took pains to bring before 
that tribunal the claims of his competitor, and invited a thorough 
investigation of their respective pretensions. Upon the adjourn- 
ment of the last session of Congress the undersigned proceeded 
to Hartford, and there instituted a proceeding intended to be within 
the provisions of the Judiciary act of 1789, or the acts of 1812 
and 1817, for the taking of testimony, and in this manner ex- 
amined all the witnesses within his reach, who had been supposed 
to support Wells's claim, in the presence of Mrs. Wells's counsel, 
and with all the disadvantages of an examination in chief of 
witnesses to a certain degree committed against him, followed by 
a cross examination in support of their original evidence. 

This testimony will be found in the Appendix. The mass of it 
may be disposed of with this remark, that it reduces the resolu- 
tions of the Council and of the Legislature, and the memorial of 
Dr. Ellsworth and others to the grade of authority above sug- 
gested in that behalf. The case is left to stand upon the evidence 
of Riggs, Marcy, Ellsworth, and the witnesses who testify to the 
extraction of their teeth under the influence of nitrous oxide gas. 
Of this la5t, it is unnecessary to say more than has already 
been said ; but of the witnesses Riggs, Marcy and Ellsworth, it 
is proper to take more special notice. 

And first, it may be remarked that Marcy and Ellsworth do not 
aid Dr. Weils's pretensions beyond the conceded case extending to 
the expedition to Boston, and the consequent abandonment of the 
speculation. 

All that they say is entirely consistent with the testimony of 
Cooley, Bolles, Olmstead and Brinley. If indeed they regarded 
the great discovery accomplished in 1844, they would find it dif- 
ficult to defend themselves, not alone before the profession, but 
before the w^orld, for suffering it to sleep in oblivion whilst thou- 
sands were undergoing unspeakable agony. One of these gen- 
tlemen (Dr. Marcy) by his own account, pretends that he per- 
formed a single surgical operation with the aid of this discovery ; 
(an operation, by the way, which he alone appears to have wit- 
nessed) and then threw aside the whole subject until after the un- 
dersigned's discovery : — and the other (Dr. Ellsworth) by his own 
account, a writer for the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 
contented himself with a casual allusion to it in an article headed 
'*0N THE MODUS OPERANDI OF MEDICINE," published six or scvcn 
months afterwards ; — which allusion, incidentally introduced, is 
quoted in the Wells pamphlet of 1852, in the following words : 
"the nitrous oxyde gas has been used in quite a number of cases 
by our dentists, during the extraction of teeth, and has been 



25 

proved by its excitement perfectly to destroy pain." This is all 
that Dr. Ellsworth can produce by the way of evidence that 
prior to 30th September, 1846, (when the undersigned's discovery 
^vas made) he knew of this great truth which has astoun- 
ded THE WORLD. (See note page 76 Appendix.) 

It is upon Dr. Marcy principally that the Wells claim seeks to 
support itself. It must be conceded that he, Marcy, knew from 
Wells all that Wells knew or suspected. Wells himself, in his 
publication of 1847, (p. 13) vouches Dr. Marcy as the person 
with w^hom he ''advised" and *' discussed the comparative 
merits of nitrous oxide gas and rectified sulpkurie ether. ^' 

It is important, then, to see, if possible, to what conclusions 
Wells's experiments and discoveries had brought Dr. Marcy. 
This gentleman, in his deposition of 1849, (Wells's pamphlets, 
1852, p. 31,) (Appendix, p. 110,) declares that, "in the month 
OF October, 1844," {which is two months prior to the first no- 
tion of Wells on this subject,) he " witnessed the extraction of a 
tooth from the person of T. C. Goodrich, esq., of this city, 
(Hartford,) by Dr. Horace Weils, after nitrous oxide gas had been 
inhaled, and without the slightest consciousness of pain on the 
part of the gentleman operated upon. Not only was the extrac- 
tion accomplished without pain, hut the inhalatum of the gas was 
effected without any of those indications of excitement, or at- 
ternpts at muscular exertion, which so commonly obtain when the 
gas is administered without a definite object qr previous 
mental preparation. By this experiment two important, and, 
to myself, entirely new facts, were demonstrated : 1st, That 
the body could be rendered insensible to pain by the inhalation of 
a gas or vapor capable of producing certain effects upon the or- 
ganism ; and 2d, When such agents were administered to 
a sufficient extent, for a definite object, and w^ith a suit- 
able impression being previously produced upon the MtND, 

that no unusual mental excitement, or attempt at physical effort, 
would follow the inhalation.^' 

It is impossible to read Dr. Marcy's statement of these "two 
new facts" without being reminded of Cooley's testimony with 
regard to mesmerism. It is apparent that the second and im- 
portant fact which Dr. Marcy deduced from the experiment of 
Dr. Wells, viz : that the insensibility to pain would be attended 
by such a condition of the patient as would make it possible to 
subject him to a surgical operation, hinged upon tw^o independent 
and fanciful prerequisites, viz : that the gas should be " admin- 
istered FOR A DEFINITE OBJECT," aud that the patient should 

have " A SUITABLE IMPRESSION PREVIOUSLY PRODUCED UPON THE 
MIND." 

Again he says, in an article published in the Journal of Com- 
merce, (Appendix, p. 113,) on the 30th day of December, 1846 : 
" Another fact in relation to the exhilarating gas, Sfc, is icorthy 



26 

of notice ; under ordinary circumstances, the person who inhales 
the gas HAS no control over himself, but if, previous to his 
taking the gas, he fixes his mind strongly upon some given 

PURPOSE, AND exercises HIS WILL STEADILY IN ORDEE, TO EFFECT 
AND CARRY OUT THIS PURPOSE, HE WILL, IN NEARLY EVERY IN- 
STANCE, REMAIN QUIET." 

The same description of it is given by Wells in his publication, 
dated Paris, February 17, 1847, (Appendix, p. 118,) Boston]Atla*s- 

This is sheer charlatanism. A discovery which depends for its 
efficacy upon the concurrence of two fools, one to administer, and 
the other to be administered upon — leaving everything to the 
effect of imagination — is only entitled to the attention of such as 
are fit to be operators or patients under that system; and the 
number of these, it is hoped, is small. 

But how is it possible that these mental pre- occupations of 
operator and patient should have been adopted by Dr. Marcy as 
necessary conditions to the success of Dr. Wells's discovery, if 
that discovery was understood by Marcy at that time, as identical 
with or equivalent to the discovery made by the undersigned ? 
The latter is purely physical in its operation. It does not differ 
in this respect from any other fact or theory in the materia 
medica. The former essentially depends upon the imagination ; 
and, fortunately for humanity, must have but a rare and doubtful 
operation. It is nevertheless a fact, not now to be disputed, that 
the manipulations of the mesmerizer have reduced patients (and 
more than the twelve or fifteen claimed by Wells) to the condi- 
tion which Dr. Marcy proposes in his second specification of 
^'important and new facts." 

It is not to be wondered at, then, that these gentlemen, Drs- 
Marcy and Ellsworth, should concur with Wells in the opinion 
that the operation was uncertain and could not be trusted, and 
practically abandoned all idea, if such was ever entertained by 
them, of making it a useful agent in surgery. In fact, it does not 
appear that either of them performed any operation with its aid 
until after the discovery by the undersigned ; at all events not 
between that time and the early experiments which we have seen 
had resulted so as to induce W^ells himself to abandon the subject. 
After the discovery by the undersigned had been fuUy tested and 
established, it was easy enough to reason themselves into the be- 
lief that it was nil embraced in that which they participated in, 
but which had been without the slightest profit to the world at 
large, or any practical advance towards this great boon to hu- 
manity. 

It is true that Dr. Marcy states that he performed an operation 
with ether soon after Wells's first experiments with the nitrous 
oxide ; but it is by no means clear that such was the fact ; and if 
the fact, it can hardly be doubted that the experiment was a 
failure. When the idea occurred to Wells, in the face of his 



27 

letter of October, 1846, to the undersigned, to claim that he had 
made the same, or an equivalent discovery in 1844 ; and when 
Drs. Marcy and Ellsworth came to his aid, it is not possible that 
the fact that ether itself had been used, and that '* the operation 
was entirely unattended with pain," if such a fact existed, 
should not have instantly occurred to them as most material to 
his claim, and that the facts and particulars, with clear proof 
thereof, should not have been instantly produced. Yet there are 
two publications by Dr. Marcy himself, defending Well's claim- 
one on the 30th of December, 1846, (Appendix, page 113) and the 
other on the 8th of January, 1847, (Appendix, page 116) both 
in the Journal of Commerce, ii> which the material fact, although 
directly pertinent to the precise purpose of the publications, is 
not even alluded to. In both of these publications he limits him- 
self to the statement that he, Marcy, had suggested the use of 
ether to Wells ; but that, " upon reflection and more full discus- 
sion," he had advised that the exhilarating gas was preferable. On 
the 27th of March, 1847, (Wells's pamphlet, Hartford, J. Gayland 
Welles, 1847, p. 20) he makes his third publication, (Appendix, 
p. 132) and ve.'ifies the same by affidavit, wherein, after reiterat- 
ing that ether had been discussed and that he had advised against 
its use, he for the first time states the following fact : " 1 also 
take this occasion to assert from my positive knowledge that the 
ether vapor was administered very soon afte/r this period, (and 
prior to 1845) /o?- the perjormance of a surgical operation.^' 

This is all he says of it. He does not intimate that he per- 
formed the operation ; but, on the contrary, states that he had 
steadily advised against its use. Nor does he state what the 
operation was, nor what success attended it. It was reserved 
for his fourth statement (Appendix, page 11 0) made five years 
after the operation, (1849,) to disclose the fact that he himself 
performed the operation upon " the young man above alluded 
to;" and that it was the cutting '^from his head, an encysted 
tumor, about the size of an English walnut, and that the opera- 
tion was entirely unatttended with pain ; and demonstrated to Dr. 
Wells and myself, in the most conclusive manner, the anaesthetic 
properties of ether vapor." Still, there is nothing stated to enable 
any information to be obtained touching this important operation, 
beyond what Dr. M«rcy himself chooses to communicate. Wells 
(at p. 13 of his first pamphlet, March, 1847, after having made 
two previous publications without any allusion to it at all,) thus 
refers to it : " Let it be observed, however, that at this time, 
(November, 1844,) while we had the subject under consideration, 
a surgical operation was performed at Dr. Marcy's office under 
the influence of sulphuric ether, as is proved by affidavit. The 
Doctor then advised me by all means to continue the use 
OF nitrous oxide gas." And yet, in 1849, it is pretended that 
the operation was entirely successful and ought therefore to have 



28 

led *' by all means," to the contrary advice ! Testimony like 
this cannot be expectefl to produce conviction. 

As to the alleged operation, no one has ever been able to hear 
of it, except throuGjh Dr. Marcy. Anxious to prove the matter, 
I offered a reward of one hundred dollars, in Hartford, to any 
one who could tell the name of the patient, or give me any means 
to find^him. On thiij point, I beg to refer to the statement of 
Mr. Cornwall, my counsel there, at p. 133 Appendix. The failure 
to produce, indicate, or in any degree describe ^'the young man,'' 
under these circumstances, is entirely consistent with my view of 
Dr. Marcy\s evidence. 

The facts connected with Wells's own conduct and publications 
in this matter are worthy of attention in this connexion. 

After his remarkable letter of October, 1846, and when the dis- 
covery by the undersigned had assumed its full magnitude and 
importance. Wells first appears as a claimant before the public, 
on the 7th December, 1846, (Appendix, p. 10) in the Hartford 
Courant, two years after his pretended discovery, and limits his 
pretensions to having had a tooth drawn himself, and afterwards 
having performed similar operations for " twelve or fifteen" others 
under the influence of nitrous oxide. No allusion is made to any 
experiment with ether, or to any subsequent use of nitrous oxide ; 
but his whole career is there summed up with his failure at Bos- 
ton, in 1845. His letter to the undersigned of October, 1846, 
shows his appreciation of the advantages that would belong to the 
discoverer. He «ays, ^* If the operation of administering the gas 
is not attended with too much trouble, and will produce the effect 
you state, it will undoubtedly be a fortune to you, provided it is 
rightly managed.'' After publishing his letter of the 7th of De- 
cember, he proceeds to Europe upon a speculation in pictures, 
(Williams, Appendix, p. 130, Eolles, Appendix, p. 14, Olmstead, 
Appendix, p. 12, &c.) Arriving in Paris, he finds the whol-e 
scientific world agitated with this subject. He makes no claims, 
(see B. P. Poore, p. 469.) It is not till after Dr. Brewster, of 
Paris, reads the publication by Marcy and Ellsworth, taken from 
the Journal of Commerce, and sends to him, WelJs, "begging 
him to call on him (Brewster) and tell him if he is the true 
man," that he is stimulated to make the publication in Galignani's 
Messenger, (A pp. p. 118,) which is copied in the Boston Atlas, 
(B. P. Poore, p. 469— Letter of Brewster dated 24th of March, 
1847, App. p. 131.) In this publication, his '^ twelve or fifteen" 
have become "fifty," and his experiments, theretofore stated to 
have been with nitrous oxide alone, are claimed to have been with 
ether also. He is entirely unprepared with any proof. (Brewster, 
App. p. 110.) Dr. Brewster, to the New York Journal of Com- 
merce, says: "Imagine to yourselves, Messrs. Editors, a man to 
have made this more than brilliant discovery and visiting Europe 
without bringing with him his proof." Again Brewster (letter 



29 

to Morton, dated 21st March, 1847 — Appendix, p. 130,) says : 
'' Dr, Wells^s visit to Europe had no connexion with this disco- 
very; and it was only after 1 had seen the letter of Drs. Ellsworth 
and Marcy, that I prevailed upon him to present his claims to 
the Academy of Sciences,'' &c. 

During what time, and where, were those additional operations 
performed — thirty-five or thirty-eight in number ? 

In December, 1^46, there were only twelve or fifteen in all — 
now they are fifty in the space of about two months thereafter. 

How had these two months been employed ? 

He sailed for Europe upon his picture speculations in De- 
cember — is in Paris engaged in that business, until Brewster, 
acting on the faith of Marcy's and Ellsworth's publication, urges 
him to put forth his claim. He then publishes it at Paris. It is 
not perceived how it is possible for him to account for this quad- 
rupling of his operations upon any other basis of fact, or con- 
sistently with the established facts above referred to. 

Conforming to this model the publications and afifidavits of 
Ellsworth, Marcy, and Riggs, have on every successive occasion 
expanded themselves into equal ratio. 

Equally remarkable, and inconsistent with fact, is the following 
preface in the publication m.ade at Paris : 

^^ The less atmospheric air is admitted into the lungs with any 
gas or vapor, the better — the more satisfactory will be the result 
of the operation.'' ilppendix 118. 

When it is known that the administration of ether in sufficient 
quantity to produce total insensibility without atmospheric air, 
occasions certain death, what credit is it possible to give to the 
assertion of fact made in this publication, by Wells, for the first 
time, that he had used the ether at ail or knew anything of its 
properties in this respect. 

The testimony of the physicians and surgeons of Hartford (Ap- 
pendix) and its neighborhood, examined by the U. S. Commissioner 
under the proceeding before referred to, sufficiently shows that even 
within that limited district the alleged discovery of Wells was not 
practically regarded as of any value. This is consistent with the 
judgment which Wells himself pronounced on it after hisj-eturn 
from Boston ; but is wholly inconsistent with the face now put on 
it by Drs. Marcy and Ellsworth, the only two who go beyond mere 
rumor and heresay. 

It remains, however, to examine the testimony of John M. 
Biggs, who alone testifies to the use of the nitrous oxide gas 
between the period of Wells's abandonment and the discovery by 
the undersigned. 

Attention has already been called to the manner in which by 
his first and second affidavits, he colors the facts touching the 
first experiment by Wells, and his own participation in it ; and to 
his confident and reiterated statements about the date, now fully 



30 



ascertained to have been false in fact. Not less exceptionable is 
the tone and spirit of his deposition, No. 2 ; (Appendix, p. 91,) 
a tone and spirit which rarely fails to discredit a witness to a 
greater or less extent before court or jury. In fact the whole 
deposition wears rather the aspect of a partisan address than of 
evidence sanctioned by an oath. In March, 1847, his first depo- 
sition (Appendix, p. yO,) is made at the instance of Wells him- 
self, and was published in Wells's pamphlet. In November, 1849^ 
his second deposition (Appendix, p. 91) if it can be properly so 
called, largely expands the first beyond its original scope. 

Without taking the time to ascertain minutely in all respects 
the testimony of this witness, the undersigned will refer to a few 
prominent points, which entirely discredit him. 



1st. In his deposition of No- 
vember, 1849, he says : 

" I also further declare that I 
was perfectly aware of the anaes- 
thetic properties of the vapor 
of sulphuric ether during the 
period above alluded to, and 
previous to January 1, 1845 ; 
and that I made use of the ni- 
trous oxide gas in my dental 
operations simply becaicse /be- 
lieved THEN, AS I BELIEVE 
NOW, that the last named agent 
ivas more efficient, safer, and al- 
together preferable to the ether 
vapor as an ansesthetic agent, 
atid not because I entertained 
any doubt respecting the pain- 
preventing properties of the 
last-named article. ' ' 

Again: Since November, 
1844, the nitrous oxide gas 
jias, for the most part, been 
employed by me in my dental 
operations as an anesthetic 
agent, in preference to the 

ETHER OR CHLOROFORM. The 

ease and comfort ivith tvhich it 
may be inhaled, and its entire 
efficacy, have amply repaid me 
for the extra trouble of prepar- 
ing it. 



Upon his examination before 
the United States Commissioner 
he produces his book of charges, 
and, with it before him, testi- 
fies that the last charge made 
by him for operating with ni- 
trous oxide gas was on the 20th 
November, 1846. — Interroga- 
tories 92, 93, 94. 



And, In answer to 148th in- 
terrogatory, he says : 

^' I HAVE NOT USED IT (nitrous 

oxide) SINCE CHLOROFORM WAS 
INTRODT^CED INTO PRACTICE." 



31 



2d. In the same deposition 
he testifies to one or more suc- 
cessful trials made with ether 
during the year 1844, by Drs. 
Wells and Marcy. 



3d. In the same deposition 
he testifies to Dr. Morton's 
having been a pupil of Dr. 
Wells. 

In his examination before 
the United States Commission- 
er, the following questions and 
answers appear : 

No. 107. What was the first 
dental operation you saw Dr. 
Wells perform after he return- 
ed from Boston, in January, 
1845, while the patient was un- 
der the influence of nitrous ox- 
ygen gas ? 

Ans. I don't remember. 

No. 108. Will you sweak 

HE PERFORMED ANY AFTER HIS 

RETURN, IN 1845 ? 

Ans. I can't directly 

SWEAR THAT HE DID : MY IM- 
PRESSION IS THAT HE DID. 

No. 109. Upon whom ? 
Ans. I don't remember any 

PERSON TO WHOM HE GAVE IT. 



In his examination before the 
United States Commissioner, it 
clearly appears that he had no 
knowledge of any such fact ; 
yet the purpose of the depo- 
sition of 1849, in this respect, 
was evidently to verify that 
fact by his oath. The only 
case in which it is pretended 
that ether was used prior to 
Morton's discovery, is that 
stated by Dr. Marcy; as to 
which, it does not appear that 
any other person but himself 
has any knowledge of it. 

On his examination before 
the Commissioner, he admits 
that he has no knowledge of the 
fact thus verified by him. 

On the same examination, 
after an interval of some thirty- 
one questions, he proceeds as 
follows : 

No. 140. Do you know of 
any other person who adminis- 
tered the gas, at this time, in 
dental or surgical operations, 
from January 23, 1845, to No- 
vember 2, 1846 ? 

Ans. I SAW Wells adminis- 
ter IT. I KNOW OF NO OTHER, 
EXCEPT BY HEARSAY. 

No. 141. Will you state to 
whom you saw Dr. Wells ad- 
minister the gas, for dental or 
surgical purposes, between Jan. 
23, 1845, and Nov. 2, 1846 ? 

Ans. I do not i^ecolleet the 
name of any one, it is so long 
since. 

No. 142. How can you say 
that it was between those dates ? 

Ans. I know it by this: De- 
cember 11, 1844, I extracted a 



32 

tooth for Dr. Wells. In January 
following he went to Boston to 
exhibit his discovery there. On 
his return, he used the gas at 
different times from my appa- 
ratus in the back office. From 
April, 1845, to September, 
1845, I think he intermitted his 
dental business. He gave me 
a card, and I was to do certain 
business which he had engaged, 
and allow him a per centum : 
and I find I did allow him $25 
up to 1st September, 1845. 

As to the book from which he testified, it may be sufficien^to 
refer to his evidence to justify the assertion that it is wholly 
without the credit which belongs to a regular series of entries 
made at consecutive dates ; and that nothing was easier than to 
have inserted there enties at any subsequent time, if the witness 
had been disposed so to do. In one instance he distinctly admits 
the subsequent interlineation of the words '-'Jie felt no painJ' 
after a charge made for extracting a tooth. 

Among these entries is the following : (Appendix, p. 108.) 

Wm. A, Burleigh, Mr-. Burleigh's certificate, as 

1845, July 26 : published by Wells, is dated 

To extracting tooth and fang, March 25, 1847, is as follows : 
having administered to him ni- "A little more than two 
trous oxide or exhilarating gas, years since, I learned that Dr. 
by which influence he experi- H. Wells, dentist, of this city, 
enced no pain whatever. $1 50. had made the discovery that by 

the use of an exhilarating gas 
or vapor, he could render the 
nervous system insensible to 
pain under severe surgical ope- 
rations, and that he was using 
it in his practice with success. 
Having an opportunity to wit- 
ness its effect upon several per- 
sons during the operation of ex- 
tracting teeth, I was so delighted 
and surprised with its manifest 
success, that I desired a trial of 
it upon myself. The gas was 
accordingly administered, and 
two carious teeth were extracted 



33 

from my lower jaw, without tlie 
least suffering on my part ; 
though ordinarilj, owing to the 
firmness with which my teeth 
are fixed in my jaw, I suffer 
pain from their extraction. 
WM. H. BURLEIGH, 
Editor of the " Qharter Oak.'' 
Hartford, March 25, 1847. 

It cannot be doubted that this certificate refers to the same 
fact to which Riggs's entry relates. In 1847, Mr, Burleigh 
"would not have confined himself to the statement of one operation 
in the year 1845, if he had been subjected to two. He fixed the 
time just where we suppose it would appear, if rightly entered on 
Riggs's book, viz: during the experiments m^ade by Wells, a little 
caore than two years before March, 1847, and before the aban- 
donment by Wells. It is to be remembered that Riggs does not 
testify to the fact that the operation was made on the 26th July, 
1845, though his testimony is evidently shaped to produce that 
impression. 

It may be proper to subjoin here a few extracts from the tes- 
timony of the witness, upon his interrogation on behalf of the 
undersigned before the Commissioner, in order to complete this 
examination of his credibility. 

Q. 30. How many persons c:in you state Dr. Wells adminis- 
tered nitrous oxide to, previjus to his going to Boston, of your 
own personal knowledge ? 

Ans. I cannot state the exact number, but to quite a number. 

Q. 31. How do you know this? 

Ans. I know it from being present at many of them. 

Q. 32. How many will you swear to as to having seen Wells 
administer it? '^■ 

Ans. I cannot say. 

Q. 33. Can you say one or a hundred ? 

Ans. It was more than one, and I don't think it was a hun- 
dred. 

Q. 33. How many more than one? 

Ans. I cannot swear to the exact number. 

Q. 34. How many persons did Wells give the gas to that you 
knew, and what are their names? 

Ans. I cannot state any name except J. Oayland Well-es at 
present. 

Q. 35. How many of the operations you saw performed by 
Dr. Wells were upon males. 

Ans. All of them were on males. 
3 



34 

Q. 36, lIoYr many of them did you converse with ? 

Ans. I cannot tell. 

Q. 37. Did you converse with any of them? 

Ans. I did. 

Q. 38. Were they cil«raens of Hartford ? 

Ans. I could not say whether all were citizens of Hartford. 

Q. 39. Were any of them except J. G. Welles ? 

Ans. My impression is some of them resided here. 

Q. 40. Have you ever conversed with them since ? 

Ans. I have met hut very few of them — don't recollect con- 
versing v/ith any one except J. G. Welles. 

Q. 41. Which of them have you met? 

Ans. I do not recollect the names of any one. 

Q. 43. When did you first administer nitrous oxide for ej- 
tracting teeth? 

Ans. Before the 1st of January, 1845. 

Q. 44. What was the name of the first patient ? 

Ans. I don't remember. I charged nothing during these ex- 
periments, and I have no means of knowing. 

Comment upon testimony like this would be superfluous. 

It is a fact, however, worthy of remark, that although the ex- 
amination of this witness was before the 30th November last, 
and the deposition was kept open until the 18th of December, 
yet the Commissioner certified that the witness neglected and re- 
fused to attend and sign the same and he was compelled to return, 
the deposition without the signature of the deponent. 

I forbear to prolong this paper by any further argument. It 
seems to me that the facts themselves are the most forcible and 
convincing argument that can be presented. From them it clearly 
results that this discovery has heen the direct result of my own 
conception, ray own labor, my own sacrifices, my own boldness 
and personal risk. On the other hand, all that my opponents 
can claim, upon the most partial coDsideration of their evidence, 
is that they had, as they say, a/n idea which was never realized, 
a project which they never executed, a dream from which the 
world derived no advantage. 

I submit my claim to your just and enlightened minds with en- 
tire confidence. 

With the highest respect, 

Your most obedient servant, 

W. T. G. MORTON, M. D. 



82b congress, Isi SESSION— HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. 



MAJOEITY EEPOET. 



^"WILLIAM T. G. MORTON, M. i>.— SULPHrjRIC ETHER. 



1852. 

Kefeiied to a Select Committee. 



Dr. William H. Bissell, of Iljinois, Chairmtin. 



The Select Committee, to ivhom was referred the memorial of 
Br. William T. G. Morton, asking remuneration from Con- 
gress for the discovery of the ancesthetic or pain-subduing 

■properties of sulphuric ether, 

REPORT: 

That upon the suggestion of the memorialist, that his claim to 
the discovery was contested by Dr. Charles T. Jacksfon, of Bos- 
ton, the chairman addressed to him a letter, notifying him of the 
proceedings, and of the day when the committee would begin the 
investigation ; advising him, that if he desired to do so, he was 
at liberty to contest Dr. Morton's application. The chairman re- 
ceived a statement from Dr. Jackson, in reply. Afterwards a me- 
morial from Dr. Jackson was presented to the House, and referred 
to your committee. And on the 2(Hh day of December, 1851, at 
a meeting held pursuant to notice, both parties appeared before 
your committee : Dr. Morton, by his counsel, J. M. Carlisle, Esq., 
and Dr. Jackson by J. L. Hayes, Esq. In his paper Dr. Jackson 
presented objections to the inquiry, combining, in effect, a plea 
that the matter was res judicata, and a plea to the jurisdiction of 
Congress, which. were discussed and considered as preliminary to 
a general investigation. The objections are embodied in the fol- 
lowing extracts. 

After averring that the discovery was his, and his only, and thai 
he alone gave it to the world. Dr. Jackson proceeds as follows : 

••' He, the undersigned, therefore, distinctly and UDcquivocalh 
claims to be the sole and original discoverer of the aniiesthetic and 



36 

pain-subduing properties of sulphuric ether ; and hereby commu- 
nicates the fact to the Congress of the United States, and de- 
See p. 79. clares that his rights have been fully admitted by ail the scientific 
societies that have examined ii^to the claims of the numerous as- 
pirants to the honor of the discovery, and that, in consequence of 
this result of investigations of all the claimant's pretensions, the 
See p. 94. ?!>[ational Academy of Sciences of France awarded to the under- 
signed "the Monthyon prize for the greatest medical discovery,'' 
and the goveinnient of France awarded to him also the Cross of 
the Legion of Honor,* and the King of Sweden the gold Medal of 
J. ^g Merit. He, the undersigned, therefore, regards the question of 
129. ' discovery settled in the scientific world, and cannot but express 
his surprise," &c., kc. 

x\nd, again, he "begs that he may be put to no further trouble 
and expense in defending his scientific rights to the discovery." 

Andj again, he begs "that he may be allowed to pursue his 
staJies ^nd labors m peace, and not be compelled to spend his 
valuable time in waiting upon Congress, merely for the purpose 
of seeing that his rights suffer no detriment." 

Your committee being unable to perceive the force of these ob- 
jections, overruled them, and in the discharge of the duty imposed 
See p 121 on i hem by the House, proceeded with the investigation. A mass 
^ of written and printed statements was offered by Dr. Jackson, 
tending to impeach the character of Dr. Morton, which the latter 
requested should be received, he being allowed time to produce 
rebutting evidence, and to adduce evidence on his part impeaching 
Dr. Jackson's character for veracity, and proving several cases in 
which he had claimed the inventionsf of others as his own. This 
your committee rejected, deeming it wholly irrelevant to the sub- 
ject committed to them by the resolution of the House, and leadmg 
to a long and laborious trial of many immaterial issues. 

Their first inquiry was directed to the question whether a dis- 
covery had in fact been made, important to mankind, and in its 
importance and value to the American people worthy of national 
recoiTnition and reward. 

The alleged discovery consists in the total annihilation or pre- 
vention of pain in the most severe suigical operations, and in ob- 
stei-ic cases, by the inhalation of the vapor of sulphuric ether. It 
is alleged also that the pain-destroying agent is innocent, produc- 
ing no^injurious consequences to the patient inhaling it. If this 
be true, and it be indeed a discovery, its national importance, its 
importance to the human race, is manifest. 

Intense pain is regarded by mankind, generally, as so serious 
an evil that it would have been strange indeed if efforts had not 
been early oiade to diminish this species of suffering. The use of 

~*~The m"dal was ^iven just as much for what Dr. Jackson may have done as 
a geologist, as for anything he may hare had to do with ether, and so was the 
cross. See p. VZ'^. 
t Magnetic Telegraph, &c. 



37 

the juice of the poppy, henbane, mandragora, and other narcotic 
preparations, to effect this object by their deadening influence, 
may be traced back till it disappears in the darkness of a highly 
remote antiquity. Intoxicating vapors were also employed, by 
way of inhalation, to produce the same effects as drugs of this 
nature introduced into the stomach. This appears from the ac- 
count given by Herodotus, of the practice of the Scythians, seve- 
ral centuries before Christ, of using the vaj)or of hemp seed as a- 
means of drunkenness. The known means of stupefaction were 
very early resorted to, in order to counteract pain produced by 
artificial causes. In executions, under the horrible form of cruci- 
fixion, soporific mixtures were administered to alleviate the pangs 
of the victim. The draught of vinegar and gal], or myrrh, offered 
to the Saviour in his agony, was the ordinary tribute of human 
sympathy extorted from the bystander by the spectacle of intole- 
rable anguish. 

That some letheon anodyne might be found to assuage the tor- 
ment of surgical operations as they were anciently performed, 
cauterizing the cut surfaces, instead of tying the arteries, was 
not only a favorite notion, but it had been in some degree, how- 
ever imperfect, reduced to practice. Pliny, the naturalist, who 
perished in the erruption of Vesuvius, which entombed the city of 
Herculaneum, in the year 79, bears distinct and decided testi- 
mony to this fact. 

*' It has a soporific power," says he in his description of the 
plant known as the mandragora or circeius — " It has a soporific 
power on the faculties of those who drink it. The ordinary potion 
is half a cup. It is drunk against serpents, and before cuttings 
and punctiirings, lest they should be felt." {Bibitur et antra 
serpentes, et ante sectiones, p unction esqtie, ne f^miiantur.') 

When he comes to speak of the plant eruca, called by us the 
rocket, he informs us that its seeds, w^hen drunk, infused in wine, 
by criminals about to undergo the lash, produce a certain cal- 
lousness or induration of feeling, [duaitiam quondam contra 
sensum induere.) 

Pliny also asserts that the stone MemphitiSy powdered and 
applied in a liniment with vinegar, will stupify parts to be cut or 
cauterized, " for it so paralyzes the part that it feels no pain ; 
nee sentit cruciatum.^^ 

Dioscorides, a Greek physician of Cilicia, in Asia, who was 
born about the time of Pliny's death, and who wrote an exten- 
sive work on the materia medica, observes, in his chapter on 
m^^ndragora — 

1. ^' Some boil down the roots in wine to a ihiid part, and 
preserve the juice thus procured, and give one cyathus of it in 
sleeplessness and severe pains, of whater part; also, to cav.^e the 



38 

insensibility-— to produce the anaesthesia [poiein anaisthesian) of 
those who arc to he cut or cauterized.^* 

2, " There is prepared, also, besides the decoction, a wine 
from the bark of the root, three minae being thrown into a cask 
of sweet wine, and of this three cyathi are given to those who are 
to be cut or cauterized, as aforesaid ; for being thrown into a 
deep sleep, thej/ do not perceive pain.'* 

3. Speaking of another variety of mandragora, called morion, 
he observes, "medical men use it also for those who are to be 
cut or cauterized." 

Dioscorides also describes the stone Memphitis, mentioned by 
Pliny, and says that when it is powdered and applied to parts to 
be cut or cauterized, they are rendered, without the slightest 
danger, wholly insensible to pain. Matthiolus, the commentator 
on Dioscorides, confirms his statement of the virtues of mandra- 
gora, which is repeated by Dodoneus. " Wine in w^hich the 
roots of mandragora has been steeped," says this latter writer, 
" brings on sleep, and appeases all pains, so that it is given to 
those who are to be cut, sawed, or burned, in any parts of their 
body, that they may not perceive pain." 

The expressions used by Apuleius, of Madaura, who flourished 
about a century after Pliny, are still more remarkable than those 
already quoted from the older authors. He says, when treating 
of mandragora, ''' If any one is to have a member mutilated, 
burned, or sawed, [mutilandurn, comhureiidum, vel serrandum,) 
let him drink half an ounce with wine, and let him sleep till the 
member is cut away, without any pain or sensation, {et tantum 
dormiet, quosque ahscindatur membrum aliquo sine dolore et 
sensu.**) 

It was not in Europe and in Western Asia alone that these 
early efforts to discover some letheon were made, and attended 
with partial success. On the opposite side of the continent, the 
Chinese, who have anticipated the Europeans in so many import- 
ant inventions, as in gunpowder, the mariner's compass, printing, 
litography, paper money, and the use of coal, seem to have been 
quite as far in advance of the accidental world in medical science. 
They understood, ages before they were introduced into Christen- 
dom, the use of substances containing iodine for the cure of tlie 
goitre, and employed spurred rye, ergot, to shorten dangerously- 
prolonged labor in difficult accouchments. Among the therapeutic 
methods confirmed by the experience of thousands of years, the re- 
cords of which they have preserved with religious veneration, the 
employment of an anaesthetic agent to paralyze the nervous sensi- 
bility before performing surgical operations, is distinctly set forth. 
Among a considerable number of Chinese works on the pharma- 
copaeia, medicine, and surgery in the National Library at Paris, 
is on® entitled, Kov-kin-i'tong, or general collection of ancient 



39 

and modern medicine, in fifty volumes quarto. Several hundred 
biographical notices of the most distinguished physicians in China 
are prefixed to this work. The following curious passages occur 
in the sketches of the biography of Hoa-tko, who flourished under 
the dynasty of Wei, between the years 220 and 230 of our era. 
"When he determined that it was necessary to employ acupunc- 
ture, he applied it in two or three places ; and so with the moxa, 
if that was indicated by the nature of the affection to be treated. 
Bat if the disease resided in parts upon which the needle, moxaj 
or liquid medicaments could not operate, for example in the 
bones, or the marrow of the bones, in the stomach, or the intes- 
tines, he gave the patient a preparation of hemp, (in the Chinese 
language mayo,) and after a few moments he became as insensible 
as if he had been drunk or dead. Then, as the case required, he 
performed operations, incisions, or amputations, and removed the 
cause of the malady, then he brought together and secured the 
tissues, and applied liniments. After a certain number of days, 
the patient recovered, without having experienced during the 
operation the slightest pain. Hoa-tho has published, under 
the title of Kei-tchao-thou, anatomical plates, which exhibit the 
interior of the human body, which have come down to our times, 
and enjoy a great reputation." 

It will be noticed that the agent employed by Hoa-tho, w^hich 
he calls ma-yo, hemp medicine, and which is called in the annals 
of the later Hans, mofa-san, or hemp essence powder, is the ex- 
tract of the same plant mentioned by Herodotus, twenty-three 
centeries ago, cannabis Indica, the haschisch of the Arabs, which 
is now extensively cultivated in Hindostan, for the purpose of 
manufacturing the substance called Bhang, to produce a peculiar 
species of intoxication, at first seductive and delicious, but followed 
in its habitual use by terrible effects upon the constitution. 

Almost a thousand years after the date of the unmistakeable 
phrases quoted from Apuleius, according to the testimony of Will- 
iam of Tyre, and other chroniclers of the w^ars for the rescue of 
the holy sepulchre, and the fascinating narrative of Marco Polo, 
a state of anaesthesia was induced for very different purposes. It 
became an instrument in the hands of bold and crafty impostors 
to perpetrate and extend the most terrible fanaticism that the 
world has ever seen. 

The employment of anaesthetic agents in surgical operations, 
was not forgotten or abandoned during the period when they 
were pressed into the appalling service just described. In the 
thirteenth century, anaesthesia was produced by inhalation of 
an anodyne vapor, in a mode oddly forestalling the practices 
of the present day, which is thus described in the following pas- 
sage of the surgical treatise of Theodoric, who died in 1298. It 
is the receipt for the " spongia somnifera," as it is called in the 
rubric : 



40 

Here we <'The preparation of a scent for performing surgical operations, 
nineteenth^ according to Master Hugo. It is made thus : Take of opium and 
century the the juice of unripe mulherry, of h joscyamus, of the juice of the 
principle hemlock, of the juice of the leaves of the mandragora, of the juice 
and^'^acted ^^ ^^^ woody ivy, of the juice of the forest mulberry, of the seeds 
upon, viz: of lettuce, of the seed of the burdock, which has large and round 
That by the apples, and of the water hemlock, each one ounce; mix the whole 
o?^^a^*^^°o ^^ these together in a brazen vessel, and then in it place a new 
gas, surgi- sponge, and let the whole boil, and as long as the sun on the dog 
cal opera- days, till it (the sponge) consumes it all, and let it be boiled away 
tions may jj^ j^^ ^^g often as there is need of it, place this same sponge into 
formed^^^" warm water for one hour, and let it be applied to the nostrils till 
without he who is to be operated on {qici incidentus est) has fallen asleep; 
pain. ^jjd jjj ^}^ig si^iQ ]et the operation be performed, {et sic fiat chi- 

rurgia.) When this is finished, in order to rouse him, place an- 
other, dipped in vinegar, frequently to his nose, or let the juice of 
the roots of fenigreek be squirted into his nostrils. Presently he 
awakens." 

Again, in A French physician, residing in the neighborhood of Toulouse, 
teentb^cen- ^^' ^^auriol, asserts that, in the year 1832, he employed a method 
turywefind analogous to that of Theodoric, and specifies five cases in which 
a similar he succeeded in performing painless operations. 
Sd tJ"^' September 23, 1828, M. Girardin read a letter before the Acad- 
emy of Medicine, addressed to his Majesty Charles X, by Mr. 
Hickman, a surgeon of London, in which this surgeon announces 
a means of performing the most delicate and most dangerous ope- 
rations without producing pain in the individuals submitted to 
them. This proceeding consists in suspending insensibility by the 
methodical introduction of certain ga^es into the lungs. Mr. Hick- 
man had tested his proceedings by repeated experiments on animals. 
See Sir Q^^y ^e Chauliac and Brunus are the only authors on medicine 
J)2vys^^^ and surgery, besides Theodoric, Avho, during this period, allude to 
suggestion prophylactic agents to avert pain. It may be presumed, there- 
in connec-fore, that their employment was not generally very successful. 
ihe abovl^ Probably bad effects, such as congestion and asphyxia, and some- 
and Dr! times ending in death, followed their uiiskillful empiricism. J. 
Wells' at- Canappe, tliS physician of Francis I, in his work printed at Lyons 
vl^e^^hese^^ 15*32, Le Guidon pour les Barbiers et les C hirur glens, th^ 
investiga- Surgeon's and Barber's Guide, <lescribes the method o-f Theodoric 
tions, next and his followers, as already given above, and adds : ^'Les autres 
P^^^' donnent opium a borie, et fontmal, specialement s'il eet jeune; et 

le aper(^oivent, car ce est avec une grande bataille de vertu ani- 
male et nature) le. J'ai oui" quilz encoui^ent manie, et par conse- 
quent la mort." 

Thus far had the superinduction of anesthesia, .as a pre^-Jentive 
of pain, made its way into surgical practice in the niiddle ages ^ 
and even then it must have been most beneficial in its influence* 

e 



41 

in diminishing the mass of human suffering. Down to the time 
when Ambrose Pare, in the sixteenth century, suggested the ap- 
pKoation of slender ligatures to bleeding arteries, to arrest the 
hemorrhage of surgical wounds, no other means w^ere employed 
to stem the flow of blood, after capital operations, than by s(X)rch- 
ing over th4e raw surface with a red-hot iron, or plunging it ink) 
boiling pitch, or applying other strong potential cauteries. *'The 
horrors of the patient, and his ungovernable cries, the hurry of 
the op^-ators and assistants, the spaikling of the (heated) iron^, 
and the hissing of the blood against them, must have made tej rible 
scenes," »says Mr. John Bell ; '• and -surgery must, in those days, 
hr*ve been a horrible trade." 

Haller, Deneux, and Blandin, report cases of -operations per- 
formed upon patients under the influence of alcoholic intoxication, 
in obstetric and other cases, without pciin ; and Richerand has 
suggested that this expedient should be employed in the man- 
agement of dislocations diflkjult to he reduced. For Obvious rea- 
sons it has not been adopted by the profession. Mesmerism, also, 
has 'been the subject of grave discussions, and of some eKlfraordi- 
nary statements, in this connection ; but, whatever may be thought 
of the indi\'iduial cases certified by witnesses, it is not too much to 
say that it is not likely ever to become a remedy of general appli- 
cation. 

Opium has in all ages been employed to assuage pain. Van 
Helmont ca?lls it the sjiecific gift of the Creator. Guy de Chau- 
liac used it, and many surgeons have foflowed his example in 
their operations. Sassard, surgeon of the hospital de la Charite, 
strongly recommended this practice ir^ the last century. But the 
irregular action of opium, the excitability which it sometimes oc- 
casions, its bad effects upon the digestive organs and the nervous 
system, and the length of time during which its influence remains, 
are decisive objectione to this agent. Dr. Esdaille has recently 
experimented upon this subject at Calcutta, but the results are 
altogether unfavorable. 

Dan Frieten, Juvet, and Teden, have advised that mechanical 
compression should be employed to prevent pain in amputations, 
but this expedient proved but partially effectual, ami has serious 
inconveniences which require it to be rejected without question. 

The application of ice will also diminish pain undej- these cir- 
cumstances. Baron Larry, after the battle of Eylau, found a re- 
markable insensibility in the wounded who suffered amputations, 
owing to the intense .cold. The injury to the general health of 
the patient is not^, however, compensated by the imperfect and 
uncertain succese of this remedy. 

After the great improvement brought about by the introduction 
of ligaturea, the inducement to seek for a safe -and eflfectual ne- 
penthe, though still great, was vastly less than before. No prac- 
tical advance deserving to be mentic^ned was made in this dircc- 



42 

tijon until the great discovery of the available effects of jsulphuric 
ether. 

This substance has been known sinee the thirteenth century. 
Its formation was accurately described by Valerioue Cordus in 
the sixteenth century. Frobenius first designated it ether, and 
published an account of it in the philosophical transactions in 
1730. 

Il^ use as a medical agent, first alluded to by Valerius Cordus, 
and mentionied by Hoffman, Cullen, Alston, Lew^s, and Monroe, _ 
aaid other writers <oi the last century, has long been familiarly 
known. The history of its use by inhalation commenced wiih the 
pamphlet published in 1795, by Richard Pearson ; and several 
communications from the same Dr. Pearson are to be found in the 
work of Dr. Beddoes on Factitious Airs, published at Bristol, 
England, in 1796. Tbe same work contains a letter from one of 
Dr. Thornton's patients, giving an account of his use of ether by 
Dt. Thornton's advice, in a case of pectoral catarrh. He says, 
*^it gave almost immediate relief both to the oppression and pain 
in the chest." On the second trial he inhaled two spoonsfull, 
with '• immediate relief as before, and I very soon after jtU 
asleep.-'^ In 1815, Nysten, in the Dictionary of Medical Sciences, 
speaks of the inhalation of ether as familiarly known for miti- 
gatino' pains in colic. For the last fifty years, most therapeutic 
authors mention its use by inhalation in asthma, &c., as Duncan, 
Murray, Brande, Christison, Pereira,* Thompson, Barbier, Wendt, 
Vogt, Sundelin, &c. Effects analogous to intoxication, when 
ether is inhaled, are stated by American authors, as Godman, 
(1822,) Mitchel, (1832,) Professor Samuel Jackson, (1833,) Wood 
& Bache, (1834,) Miller, (1846, and early in that year.) 

Dr. John C. Warren, in his work on etherization, says : " The 
general properties of ether have been known for more than a cen- 
tury, and the effect of its inhalation, in producing exhilaration and 
See War- insensibility, has been understood for many years, not only by the 
g^^^g ^^^^^J scientific, but by young men in colleges and schools, and in the 
Morton p. shop of the apothecary, w^ho have frequently employed it for these 
38. purposes." 

About a half a century since, Sir Humphrey Davy, who had 
acted as an assistant to Dr. Beddoes, in the commencement of his 
career, suggested the possibility that a pain-subduing gas might 
be inhaled, as follows ; '^As nitrous oxide, in its extensive opera- 
tion, appears capable of destroying physical pain, it may probably 
be used with advantage during surgical operations in which no 
great effusion of blood takes place." Researches on JYitrous 
Oxide, p, 556. Upon this hint. Dr. Horace Wells, of Hartford, 
.^^ ^^^^'^ Connecticut, in the autumn of the year 1844, experimented witli 
2Q^^^^ '^' nitrous oxide gas in the extraction of teeth ; but this gas being 
found on trial to be unavailable for the desired purposes, he aban- 

* See page 257; Morton's purchase of Pereira in 1845. 



43 

doned his experiments in December, 1844, and tried none after- 
Avards. {Appendix pp. 113, 116.) 

Late in the autumn of 1844, Dr. E. E. Marcy, of Hartford, 
Conn., as appears from his own affidavit and that of F. C. Good- 
rich, of Hartford, suggested to Dr. Wells to substitute sulphuric 
ether for nitrous oxide, and informed him of its known effects, and 
how to make it. Marcy ** administered the vapor of rectified See his 
sulphuric ether in my [his] office to a young man ; * *' * and P^^''<^^- , 
after he had been rendered insensible to pain, cut from his head j^g^ York 
an encysted tumor of about the size of an English walnut. The Journal of 
operation was entirely unattended with pain." Dr. Marcy con- ?qP^"^/oJ|' 
eluded that nitrous oxide was more safe, equally efficacious, and opposing ' 
more easily administered than ether, and therefore to be preferred, Morton and 
and retained that opinion to December, 1849. '^^S^*?,^'^' 

Dr. E. R. Smilie, of Boston, in October, 1846, asserted that^Jj^gj^^jf ^^ 
he had employed successfully an ethereal tincture of opium to this experJ - 
subdue pain under the knife. He statf« that he applied this tine- "^^^^• 
ture by inhalation in the spring of 1844 : that he opened a serious 
abscess on the neck of the late Mr. John Johnson, while he was 
rendered unconscious of pain from the operation by this tincture. 

The Paris Medical Gazette, ot March, 1846, gives an account 
of remarkable experiments performed by M. Ducos, by ether, on 
animals, exhibiting most of the phenomena since witnessed in the 
human body. Sir Benjamin Brodie tried it on Guinea pigs which 
it put to sleep and killed. He doubted its safety. 

Notwithstanding this long series of efforts to procure a true 
nepenthe, the object still seemed unattainable to the wisest and 
boldest members of the surgical profession. Velpeau, than whom 
no higher authority can be quoted, said, in 1839, " to avoid pain 
in surgical operations is a chimera which it is not allowable to 
pursue at the present day. The cutting instrument, and pain, in 
operative medicine, are two words which never present themselves 
singly to the mind of the patient, and of which we must necessa- 
rily admit the association." Orfila, in his Toxicology, declares 
absolute insensibility to pain under surgical operations by etheriza- 
tion, to be a dis»^overy entirely new. Dr. J. C. Warren says, 
"The discovery of a mode of preventing pain in surgical opera- 
tions has been an object of strong desire among surgeons from an 
early period. In my surgical lectures I have almost annually 
alluded to it, and stated the means which I have usually adopted 
for the attamrnent of the object. I have also freely declared 
that, notwithstanding the use of very large doses of narcotic sub- 
stances, this desideratum had never been satisfactorily obtained. 
The successful usf^ of any article of the materia medica for this 
purpose, would therefore be hailed by me as an alleviation of 
human suffering." Finally, Sir Benjamin Brodie, in a discourse ; 

at St. George's Hospital, at so late a date as October 1, 1846, 
alluding to mesmerism, said, "There is no greater desideratum, 



44 

either in medicine or surgery, than to have the means of allaying 
or preventing bodily pain, not only in surgical operations, but in 
other cases also, but there is good reason to apprehend that it has 
not been reserved for the revival of animal magnetism under a new 
name, to accomplish that jor which all physicians and surgeons 
have been looking in vain, from the days of Hippocrates dovm to 
the present time.^'' Testimonials like these might be multiplied 
indefinitely, bat the names already quoted are of those universally 
recognised on both continents as the most illustrious cultivators 
of medical science. The desideratum of which Brodie despaired 
•^^ on the 1st of Octobei-, 1846, had been found, and its efficacy de- 
monstrated within the twenty-four hours preceding the delivery 
of his lecture. And in a few days after, the tidings were borne 
with the full speed of steam across the Atlantic, and dispersed 
over Europe and Asia, which for two thousand years had been 
looking for it in vain. 

This sketch of the progress of human knov/ledge as to the in- 
halation of sulphuric ether and its effects, and as to attempts to 
superinduce anaesthesia by various agents in ancient and modern 
times, though by no means scientifically complete, is sufficiently 
so for the purpose for which your committee have introduced it, 
to show what was and what was not known upon the subject pre- 
viously to the investigations and experiments of this memorialist. 
Your committee are satisfied, upon a full and careful examina- 
tion of all the evidence before them, that until the 30th of Sep- 
tember, 1846, it was not known that sulphuric ether might safely 
be inhaled in sufficient quantity to produce total insensibility to 
pain under the severest surgical operations. The safety of this 
agent, its certainty, its efficiency, are now^ established beyond 
question, and acknow^ledged by the whole scientific world. This 
great discovery, by far the noblest contribution which medical 
science has made to humanity within the present century, and 
with which, looking through all ages, no other except that of 
Jenner can take rank, sprung to light in the year 1846, in the 
State of Massachusetts ; and the memorialist, Dr. Wm. T. G. 
Morton, claims it as his own. 

Certain it is, he was the first who exhibited it to to the w^orld, 
and the only one w^ho publicly used or claimed it, until after its 
See Frost-8 reality and efficacy had been established. The honor of the dis- 
^^^257^^*^ covery. therefore, must be awarded to him., unless someone show, 
by satisfactory evidence, an older and a better title. From the 
30th of September, 1846, until the 2d day of January, 1847, du- 
ring which time this discovery passed successfully, the experiment 
turn crucis, Dr. Morton was in full, and sole, and undisputed 
See Dr. possession. For a time, he held the operative agent as a secret, 
Bigelow. but at last disclosed it, by letter, to the faculty of the Medical 
^'^ ' Hospital at Boston, with a view to its trial, in what is called in 
j;urgery a capital case. It was not until some time after this trial 



45 

liad been made, and proved successful, that a elaim was publicly 
set up by any one to the honor or a share in the honor of the dis- 
covery. 

The account given by Dr. Morton of the circumstances which 
directed his mind to the investigation, is simple and natural, and 
in every step corroborated by some marked circumstance, proved 
by the testimony of one or more disinterested witnesses. A nar- 
rative such as his, so supported, goes far to sustain the title which 
possession, undisputed for a time, w^ould have given him. It was 
prepared by him, and presented to the Academy of Arts and Sci- 
ences at Paris, by M. Arago, in July, 1847. Notwithstanding 
its length, we have thought proper to insert it entire.. 

" MEMOIR, 

" In the summer of 1844, being in the practice of dentistry and 
desirous to- improve myself in chemical and medical knowledge, 
I studied in the office of Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston, and, See Jack- 
in order to employ my time to the utmost advantage, I resided in I^q^^iq ^^p" 
his family. One day, in casual conversation upon my profession 59. 
of dentistry, I spoke of the operation of destroying the nerve of a 
tooth, and remarked that there was always doubt whether the 
tooth could be restored to usefulness, inasmuch as the arsenic 
produced an irritation, and left a soreness often permanent. Dr. 
Jackson said, in a humorous manner, that I must try some of his 
tooth-ache drops, and proceeded to tell me that, at a time when 
he practised medicine, he occasionally extracted teeth for partic- 
ular patients, and that in one instance a patient who could not 
summon courage for the operation asked him to apply something- 
to alleviate the pain. He applied ether, and with success, for a 
few days afterwards a friend of this patient called to obtain some 
of the 'tooHi-ache drops,' as he called them; but Dr. Jackson, 
not wishing to be troubled with dental business, told him he had 
none. Dr. Jackson then added, that as this ether might be ap- 
plied with advantage to sensitive teeth, he would send me some. 
The conversation then turned, upon the effect of ether upon the See Dr, 
system, and he told me how tlve students at Cambridge used to Gould, p. 
inhale sulphuric ether from their handkerchiefs, and that it intox- 
icated them, making them re^l and stagger. He gave no further 
intimation of the effect of ether, or of the manner of applying it. 
I may add that Dr. Jackson has confirmed my account of this 
conversation in his own statement to Dr. Gould. 

^'^ In a few days after this conversation, Dr. Jackson sent me 
a bottle of chloric ether, highly rectified, as he had offered » At 
the same time he sent a bottle to two other dentists of high re- 
spectability in Boston. I made an experiment with this ether in . 
destroying the sensibility of a valuable tooth of a patient. Miss — , rotr'uioii 
by direct application, telHng her that the operation would be slow, cester. 



46 

1 was obliged to apply it several times, but in the end the sensi- 
bility seemed to be removed, and the tooth is now, to my knowl- 
edge, in a useful condition. 

" About this time the wife and aunt of Dr. Jackson were under 
my treatment for dental purposes, and it was necessary to extract 
teeth in each case, the operation being painful and the ladies 
showing an unusual degree of sensitiveness. The last named 
lady, in particular, before the extracting of each tooth, remained 
several hours in the operating chair, unable to summon courage 
to endure the operation, and begging to be mesmerized, or that I 
would give her something to make her insensible. Dr. Jackson 
was present and made eiforts to encourage tlie lady, but did not 
suggest any mode of producing insensibility. His suggestions- 
had not gone beyond the direct application ef ether ^ in the same 
manner that laudanum and other narcotics have always been ap- 
plied to sensitive teeth. 

" The successful application I had made of the ether in destroy- 
ing the sensibility of a. tooth, together with what Dr. Jackson told 
me of its effects when inhaled by the students at college, awakened 
my attention, and having free access to Dr. Jackson's books, I 
began to read on the subject of its effects upon the animal system. 
I became satisfied that there was nothing new or particularly 
dangerous in the inhaling of ether, that it had long been the toy 
of professors and students, known as a powerful anti-spasmodic, 
anodyne, and narcotic, capable of intoxicating and stupefying, 
when taken in sufficient quantity. I found that even the appa- 
ratus for inhaling it was described in some treatises, but in most 
cases it was described as inhaled from a saturated sponge or hand- 
kerchief. Having some of the ether left which Dr. Jackson bed 
sent me, I inhaled it from a handkerchief, but there was not enough 
to produce a greater effect than exhilaration followed by head- 
ache. 

'* While investigating this subject I vras taken quite ill, and it 
being the middle of summer, I was5 advised by my physician to go 
into the country. I took with me from Dr. Jackson's library, 
and obtained in other v»^ays, several books treating on this and 
other subjects. I spent two months at the residence of my father- 
in-law, in Connecticut. While there 1 procured ether from the 
druggists, and made experiments upon birds and other animals, 
endeavoring to get them under the effects of inhalation from it. 
These experiments produced no satisfactory result, and they being 
known among my friends, I was mortified and vexed, and bottled 
up the subjects where they remain to this day. 

" In the autumn I returned to Boston, and finding that my busi- 
ness, owing to its interruption, required my constant attention, T 
was not able to pursue the investigation at that time. 

" In the course of the winter, (1844-'0) Dr. Horace Wells, of 
Hartford, Connecticut, a dentist, and formerly my partner, came 



47 

to Boston, and desired me to aid him in procuring an opportunity 
to administer the nitrous oxide gas, which he said he believed 
would destroy or greatly alleviate pain under surgical operations. 
I readily consented, and introduced him to Dr. Greorge Hayward, See Dr. 
an eminent surgeon, who oifered to permit the experiment, but as H^yw<^<^<** 
the earliest operation was not to be performed under two or three 
days, we did not wait for it, but went to Dr. Warren, whom we 
found engaged with his class. He told us that his students were 
preparing to inhale it that evening, for sport, and oifered to an- 
nounce the proposal to them, and ask them to meet us at the col- 
lege. In the evening Dr. Wells and myself went to the hall, and 
1 took my instruments. Dr. Wells administered the gas, and ex- 
tracted a tooth, but the patient screamed from pain, and the spec- 
tators laughed and hissed. The meeting broke up and we were 
looked upon as having made ourselves very ridiculous. I saw 
nothing more of Dr. Wells, but he left my instruments at my ofTic^e 
Yerj early the next morning, and went directly home. In July, 
being again in Connecticut, I called on Dr. Wells, and we spent 
some time in adjusting our former partnership accounts. He had 
then given up dentistry, and was engaged in conducting an exhi- 
bition of birds, which he said insured him better health. I went 
with him to the office of Dr. Riggs, where I spoke of the gas, and 
asked them to give some to me ; but Dr. Wells gave me to un- 
derstand that he had abandoned the experiment, thinking it could 
have no practical value. 

"In the autumn of 1845^ I returned to my business, which had 
now become almost exclusively m^echanical dentistry, or plate 
work, requiring me often to extract a great number of teeth at a 
time. Many of my patients suffered extremely, and some were 
obliged, as is the experience of every dentist, to postpone or aban- 
don the supplying full sets of teeth. I had, therefore, everything 
to call my attention to the destroying or mitigating of pain under 
these opera tioas, and great motive to induce me to follow up the 
subject. Finding that when closed up in a hollow tooth, and 
sealed with wax, ether would gradually destroy the sensibility of 
the part, I reasoned that perhaps when inhaled it might destroy 
or greatly alleviate sensibility to pain generally. 

"In the spring of 1646, Thomas R. Spear came to study with 
me, and hearing me converse upon the subject, he said he had 
inhaled ether at the Lexington Academy, where he was educated, 
and described to me its effects. This increased my interest in the 
subject, and I determined, as soon as the pressure of the spring 
business was over, to devote myself to it. In the mean time I 
tried an experiment upon a water spaniel, inserting his head in a den.p.ios' 
jar having sulphuric ether at the bottom. This was done in the 
presence of two persons at my house in West Needham, where 1 
reside during the summer months. After breathing the vapor for 
some time, the dog completely wilted down in my hands. I then 



48 

removed the jar. In about three minutes he aroused, yelled loudly, 
and sprung some ten feet into a pond of water. 

^^Immediately after this experiment, I waited on Dr. Grenville 
See Hay- G. Hayden, a young dentist, t^ld him my purpose, and made an 
n^l93^^^^° agreement with him to come to my othce and take charge of my 
business, that I might devote myself more exclusively to this sub- 
See Dana, ject. The agreement was dr,awn by R. H. Dana, jr. Esq., to 
p. 196. whose letter in the appendix I take the liberty to refer the Acad- 
emy in this connection. As soon as Dr. Hayden became acquaint- 
ed with my business, I began to devote myself to my experiments. 
I inhaled some chloric ether and morphine, the e^ect of which 
was drowsiness followed by lassitude and headaclie. 
See JSay- "Early in August I asked Dr. Hayden to procure me a four- 
^^°- ounce vial of sulphuric ether from Mr. Burnett, a druggist much 

relied upon by chemists. He did so, and I tried to induce him to 
take it. As he declined, I took half of it into the country to try 
again upon my dog. Just as I had got it ready, the dog sprang 
and threw over the jar. I felt vexed, and resolved to take it 
myself, and did so the next day, at my office. I inhaled from 
my handkerchief all the ether that was left, but was not com- 
pletely lost, yet thought myself so far insensible that I believe 
that a tooth could have been drawn with but little pain or con- 
sciousne! s. I was unwilling to send to Burnett's again for the 
same article, he being a near neighbor, and his young men well 
acquainted 'with mine, lest the knowledge of my experiments 
should get abroad. I accordingly sent a student, William P. 
?^® ^^"Leavitt, to druggists in different parts of the city, Brewers, Ste- 
*vens & Co., a firm in excellent standing, with directions to get 
sulphuric ether. After some persuasion I induced Spear, who 
had taken it at school, to inhale it. He did so, and became so 
far insensible as to drop the handkerchief, and seemed very drowsy 
and torpid. As this passed off he became excited and furious, so 
that he had to be held down in the chair ; but this subsided, and 
on coming to he expressed himself delighted with his sensations. 
Leavitt then took it, with much the same effect. I was much 
discouraged by these attempts. The effects produced were not 
such as I sought for, nor were the young men affected in the same 
manner that I had been, and as I had observed the dog to be. 
They were much more excited and less insensible. Yet I cannot 
help remarking, in this connection, that had this sulphuric ether 
been pure and highly rectified, I should have demonstrated its 
effects then, instead of at the subsequent period in September. 
See Bur- -jij^-g q^}^qy has since been analyzed, as appears by the affidavits 
376^' ^' in the appendix, and found to contain a large portion of alchohol, 
sulphur acids, and other impurities. 

" This experiment was early in August ; and it being hot weather, 
and I being somewhat out of health, I went into the country, 
and abandoned the experiments until the middle of September. 



49 

With the autumn and the restoration of health, my ambition led 
nie to resume my experiments ; and I mentioned to Dr. Ilayden 
that I feared there was so much difference in the qualities of eth^r, 
that in so delicate a matter there would be great diificalty in 
bringing about any generally uselul and reliable results. 

"Thinking that a surer effect might be produced by inhaling 
the ether through some apparatus, I called repeatedly on Mr. 
Wightman, a philosophical instrument- maker, for the purpose of 
procuring or contriving an apparatus. While examining his bags 
for inhaling nitrous oxide gas, the thought struck me that I could 
put the ether into one of these, and by making an opening to be 
closed by a valve, for the admission of atmospheric air, could 
convert it into an inhaling apparatus. Upon second thought I ^ • 
had an impression that ether would disolve India rubber, ami put ^^®^ ^^^?Ji^' 
the question to Mr. Wightman. He thought it would. I then "^7^ ^^^g^, 
put the same question as to oil silk. He said he did not know, rogatory, 
but advised me to consult a chemist, and named Dr. Jackson. 
I took from Mr, Wightman a glass tunnel, purchased an India 
rubber bag on my way, and returned to my office. I then sent 
Leavitt to Dr. Gay, a chemist, to ask the simple question wliether See Lea- 
ether would disolve India rubber. He returned, saying that Dr. P* ^^^ 
Gay was not in. In the meantime I became satisfied that the 
bottle and glass I had were not large enough for my purposes, 
and not wishing to go to unnecessary expense, I said to Dr. Hay- 
den that I would borrow a gas bag from Dr. Jackson's laboratory, gee ^ay- 
He then-suggested to me to ascertain from Dr. Jackson something den, p. 193 
as to the different qualities and preparatiocs of ether, with which 
he said chemists were alwa3^s familliar. I approved of the sug- 
gestion, but feared Dr. Jackson might guess what I was experi- 
menting upon, and forestall me. I w^ent to Dr. Jackson's, there- 
fore, to procure a gas-bag, also with the intention of ascertaining 
something more accurately as to the different preparations of ether, 
if I should find that I could do so without setting him upon the 
same track of experiment with myself. I am aware that by this 
admission I may show myself not to have been possessed by the 
most disinterested spirit of philosophic enthusiasm, clear of all 
regard for personal rights or benefits; but it is enough for me to 
say that I felt i had made sacrifices and run risks for this object ; 
that I believed myself to be close upon it, yet where another, 
vrith better opportunities for experimenting, availing himself of 
my hints and labors, might take the prize from my grasp. 

''1 asked Dr. Jackson for his gas-bag. He told me it was in 
his house. I went for it, and return€>tl through the laboratory. 
He said, in a laughing, manner, -Well, Doctor, you seem to be 
all equipped, minus the gas.' I replied, in the same manner, that 
perhaps there would, be no need of having any gas, if the person 
who took it could only be made to believe there was o;as in it, 
and alluded to the story of the man who died from being made 



50 

See Wight- to believe that he was bleeding to death, there being in fact no- 
8th°i*n?er. ^^i^g ^^t water trickled upon his leg ; but I had no intention what- 
ever of trying such a trick. He smiled and said that was a good 
story, but added, in a graver manner, that I had better not attempt 
such an experiment, lest I should be set down as a greater hum- 
bug than Wells was with his nitrous oxide gas. Seeing that here 
See Caleb was an opportunity to open the subject, I said, in as careless a 
^dy.page lyigni;;^!. as I could assume, why cannot I give the ether gas? He 
said that I could do so, and spoke again of tiie students taking it 
at Cambfidge. He said the patient would be dull and stupified, 
that I could do what I pleased with him, that he would not be 
able to help himself. Finding the subject open, I made the in- 
quiries I wished as to the different kinds and preparations of ether. 
He told me something about the preparations, and thinking that 
if he had any it wou'd be of the purest kind, I asked him to let 
me see his. He did so, but remarked that it had been standing 
for some time, and told me that I could get some highly rectified 
at Burnett's. As I was passing cut, Dr. Jackson followed me to 
the door, and told me that he could recommend something better 
than the gas-bag to administer the ether with, and gave me a flask 
with a glass tube inserted in it. 

"I procured the ether from Burnett's, and taking the tube and 
flask, shut myself up in my room, seated in the operating chair, 
and cormnenced inhaling. I found the ether so strong that it 
partially suffocated me, but produced a decided effect. I then 
saturated my handkerchief and inhaletl it from that. I looked at 
my watch and soon lost consciousness. As 1 recovered, I felt a 
numbness in ray limbs, with a sensation like nightmare, and would 
have given the world for some one to come and arouse me. I 
thought for a moment I should die in that state, and that the 
world vvouid only pity or lidicule my folly. At length I felt a 
slight tingling of the blood in the end of my third finger, and 
made an effort to touch it with my thumb, but without success. 
At a second effort, I touched it, but there seemed to be no sensa- 
tion. I gradually raised my arm and pinched my thigh, but I 
could see that sensation was imperfect. I attempted to rise from 
my chair, but fell back. Gradually I regained power over my 
limbs and full consciousness. I immediately looked at my watch, 
and found that I had been insensible between seven and eight 
minutes. 

'' Delighted with the success of this experiment, I immediately 
announced the result to the persons employed in my establishment, 
and waited impatiently for some one upon whom I could make a 
g^gPj.Qg^,g fuller trial. Toward evening, a man, residing in Boston, whose 
certificate, certificate is in the appendix, came in, suffering great pain, and 
p. 257. wishing to have a tooth extracted. Pie was afraid of the opera- 
tion, and asked if he could be mesmerized. I told him I had 
something better, and saturating my handkerchief, gave it to him 



51 

io inhale. He became unconscious almost immediately. It was 
dark, and Dr. Hayden held the lamp, while I extracted a firmly 
rooted bicuspid tooth. There was not much alteration in the , ^*® ^^^' 
pulse, and no relaxation of the muscles. He recovered in a min- 
ute, and knew nothing of what had been done to him. He re- 
mained for some time talking about the experiment, and I took 
from him a certificate. This was on the 30th of September, 1846. 
This I consider to be the first demonstration of this new fact in 
science. I have heard of no one who can prove an earlier de- 
monstration. If any one can do so, I yield to hirci the point of 
priority in time. 

"I will make a single remark upon the subject of my interview 
with Dr. Jackson. It is not necessary to go into the question of 
the origin of all ideas. I am ready to acknowledge my indebted- 
ness to men and to books for all my information upon this subject. 
I have got here a little and there a little. I learned from Dr. 
Jackson, in 1844, the effect of ether directly applied to a sensi- 
tive tooth, and proved, by experiment, that it would gradually 
render the nerve insensible. I learned from Dr. Jackson, also, tn 
1844, the effect of ether when inhaled by the students at college, 
w'hich was corroborated by Spear's account, and by what I read. 
I knew of Dr. Wells's attempt to apply nitrous oxide gas for de- 
stroying pain under surgical operations. I had great motives to 
destroy or alleviate pain under my operations, and endeavored to 
produce such a result by means of inhaling ether, inferring that 
if it would render a nerve insensible, directly applied, it might, 
w^hen inhaled, destroy or greatly alleviate sensibility to pain 
generally. Had the ether that I tried on the 5th August been 
pure, I should have made the demonstration then. I further ac- 
knovf ledge that I was subsequently indebted to Dr. Jackson for 
valuable information as to the kinds and preparations of ether, 
and for the recommendation of the highly rectified from Burnett's 
as the most safe and efficient. But my obligation to him hath this 
extent, no further. All that he communicated to me I could have 
got from other well-informed chemists, or from some books. He 
did not put me upon the experiments ; and when he recommended 
the highly rectified sulphuric ether, the effect he anticipated ivas 
only that s tup erf act ton which was not unknown, and he did not ^^^ t^^q 
intimate in any degree a suspicion of that insensibility to pain 'ill! 
which was demonstrated, and astonished the scientific world. SeeChand- 

" As soon as the man whose tooth I extracted left my office, I^^a'r2^8^*' 
consulted Dr. Hayden as to the best mode of bringing out the CableEddy 
discovery. We agreed it was best to announce it to the surgeons ^t^ Inter. 
at the hospital ; but as some time would elapse before an opera- jJ^'a^??' 
tion, I thought it best to procure some assurance which would in- page* 2G5. 
duce my patients to take it. I therefore called upon the man E. Warre.n> 
who had taken it, and found him perfectly well. Thence I went ^^^^^ *^^- 



52 

to Dr. Jackson, told him what I had done, and asked him to give 
me a certificate that it was harmless in its eiFects. This he posi- 
tively refused to do. I then told him I should go to the principal 
See J. C. surgeons and have the question thoroughly tried. I then called 
mJeToi ^^^ ^^ ' V/ar7'e7i, who promised me a?i early opportunity to try the 
2(i Inter.* experiment^ and soon after I received the invitation inserted in 
J. Mason the appendix. 

Warren, u jj^ ^v^^ mean time, I made several additional experiments in my 

6th Inter. ' office, with various success. I administered it to a boy, but it 
Dr.Hayden' produced no other effect than sickness, with vomiting, and the 
page 193. j^^y ^^.^^ taken home in a coach, and pronounced by a physician 
to be poisoned. His friends were excited, and threatened pro- 
ceedings against me. A notice of my successful experiments hav- 
ing, without my knowledge, got into the papers, several persons 
called, \vishing to have it administered. I gave it to a lady, but 
it produced no other effect than drowsiness, and when breathed 
through the apparatus named by Dr. Jackson, it produced suffo- 
cation. I was obliged to abandon this mode, and obtaining from 
Mr. Wightman a conical glass tube, I inserted a saturated sponge 
in the larger end, and she breathed through that. In this way 
she seemed to be in an unnatural state, but continued talking, and 
refused to have the tooth extracted. I made her some trifling of- 
fier, to which she assented, and I drew the tooth, without any 
indication of pain on her part, not a muscle moving. Her pulse 
was at 90, her face much flushed, and after coming to, she remained 
a longtime excessively drow^sy. From this experiment, 1 became 
satisfied of what is now well proved, that consciousness will some- 
times remain after insensibility to pain is removed. 

''1 afterwards gave it to a Miss L., a lady of about twenty - 
live. The effect upon her was rather alarming. She sprung up 
from the chair, kaped into the air, screamed, and was held down 
with difticulty. When she came to, she was unconscious of what 
had passed, but was willing to have it administered again, which 
I did with perfect success, extracting two molar teeth. After this. 
See Gouid, I tried several other experiments, some with more and some with 
page 265. jggg success, giving my principal attention to the perfecting of my 
modes of administering it. 

*' When the time drew near for the experiment at the hospital, 
I became exceedingly anxious, and gave all my time, day and 
night, hardly sleeping or eating, to the contriving of apparatus, 
and general investigation on the subject. 

'^I called on Dr. Gould, a physician who had paid much atten- 
tion to chemistry, and told him my anxieties and difficulties. He 
sympathized with me, gave me his attention, and we sat up nearly 
ail night, making sketches of apparatus ; he first suggested to me 
an antidote in case of unfavorable effects, and the valvular system, 
instead of the one I then used. The operation was to be at 10 
o'clock. I rose at daybreak, went to Mr. Chamberlain, an in- 



53 

strument maker, and, by great urging, got the apparatus done 
just after ten o'clock, hurried to the hospital, and reached the room 
just as Dr. Warren was about to begin the operation ; he haying 
given up all hope of my coming. The detailed account of this 
operation will be found in Dr. Warren's communication. There 
was a full attendance ; the interest excited w^as intense, with the 
most eager scrunity of the patient. When the operation closed^ 
the patient described his state, and Dr. Warren announced his be- 
lief that there had been insensibility to pain, my feelings may be 
better imagined than described. 

" I was invited to administer it the next day, in an operation 
for a tumor, performed by Dr. Hayward, and with perfect success. 

" On the 23d October, I saw Dr. Jackson for the first time, 
since the interview last described. I take my account of this in- a r it 
terview from a memorandum made at the time, the accuracy of jj^i^j- '^„^ 
which is attested by two witnesses of the highest respectability 897. 
who were present. He said he thought he would just look in, 
that he heard I w^as doing well with the ether, and learned from 
Mr. Eddy that I intended to take out a patent, and would make 
a good deal by it. I replied that it had been a cause of anxiety 
and expense to me, but that I thought I should now do well with 
it. He said he thought so too, and that he believed he must make ^ p, , 
a professional charge for advice. 1 asked him why in this case, j^^^® 25^ ' 
more than in any other case of his advice, arising out of previous 
relations, as m.entioned at the opening of this memoir. He said 
that his advice had been useful to me, that I should make a good 
deal out of the patent, and that I ought to make him a compensa- 
tion. I told him I would do so if I made much by the patent, in- 
dependent of what I gained in my business. He said he should 
charge me S500. I told him I would pay him that, if ten per 
cent, on the net profits of the patent amounted to so much. He 
said he was perfectly satisfied v/ith this arrangement, and so the 
interview ended. The next morning he told Mr. R. H. Eddy 
what had passed, and two or three days afterwards Mr. Eddy sug- 
gested to me that instead of paying Dr. Jackson a fee, I should 
interest him in the patent, and give him ten per cent, of the net 
profits. Mr. Eddy made this suggestion out of friendship to Dr. 
Jackson, whom he wished to benefit. He added that the patent 
would thus have the benefit of Dr, Jackson's name and skill ; that 
he would thus have a motive to give his attention to the prepara- 
tion and the apparatus, and we should be able to keep in advance 
of the improvements that might be suggested by others. He also 
said that if a suit was brought, and Dr. Jackson should be a wit- 
ness, as he doubtless would be, the aid he had given me might be 
made a handle of by persons impeaching the patent to invalidate 
my claim as the discoverer. At this time the dentist had organ- 
ized a formidable opposition to the use of ether, and all the medi- 
cal magazines in the Union, except Boston, were arrayed against 



54 

it. I felt the need of all the aid I could get, and was conscious^ 

See R. H. of a want of through scientific education myself. I was induced 

f^'^' ^^^^ by these motives to accede to Mr. Eddy's request, but did not then 

understand that Dr. Jackson claimed to be the dicoverer at all. 

But on this head I refer to the affidavits of the Messrs. Eddy. 

" I continued administering the ether in my office, and early in 

November I applied to Dr. Hayward for leave to administer it in 

a case of amputation, which I learned Vvas to take place at the 

hospital. Dr. H. J. Bigelow, in the mean time, had attended my 

experiments at my office, and taking a deep interest in the subject, 

prepared a memoir, which he read to the Boston Society for 

Medical Improvement, and subsequently to the American Academy 

of Arts and Sciences. 

See Drs. *' The surgeons of the hospitals informed me that they thought 

'^ ^' ^m' ^^ ^b^i^ ^^^y tc> decline the use of the preparation until informed 

H.° J^Bige- what it was. I immediately wrote to Dr. Warren, the senior sur- 

low, p, 319 geon, disclosing the whole matter. The operation took place on 

S.D. Town- the 7th November. About half an hour beforehand. Dr. H. J. 

Geo.' ^Hay- bigelow called for me, and said he wished me to be on the spot, 

ward, page in case it should be determined to admit me. After remaining in 

185. the ante-room for some time, it was resolved by the surgeons to 

permit the experiment, and 1 administered the ether with perfect 

success. This was the first amputation. / will also remark, that 

Dr. Jackson was absent from the city at this time, and kne^v 

nothing of the operation. 

On the 21st November, I administered the ether in an opera- 
tion for a tumor, at the Bromfield House, in the presence of a 
number of medical gentlemen, among whom I noticed Dr. Jack- 
son. This was the first time he had seen it administered, and no 
one but myself had administered it in Boston or elsewhere, to my 
knowledge. In this instance Dr. Jackson appeared merely as a 
spectator. On the 2d January, 1847, he did the first act indi- 
cating to the surgeons that he had any interest in the subject. 
On that day he called at the hospital with some oxygen gas as an 
antidote for asphyxia, which he heard was produced by the ether. 
But before this time the surgeons had satisfied themselves that 
asphyxia was not produced. With the single exception of a/a in- 
timation to Dr. Warren^ which was after its establishment at the 
hospital, and which appears in his communication, none of tht 
surgeons or other persons engaged in these experiments hdd re- 
ceived any idea from Dr. Jackson himself, or from his conduct, 
that he was in any way connected with this discovery, responsi- 
ble for the use of the preparation, entitled to the credit of its 
success, or liable to the odium of its failure. 

"li death or serious injury had occurred to any one, Dr. Jack- 
son could not have been in the least degree implicated. It was 
not until danger was over, and success certain, until the discovery 
had arrested the attention of the world, until the formidable 



55 

opposition of the dentists and of all the medical magazines and 
societies in other places had become powerless, that l3r. Jackson 
began to involve himself in it, and that his claim to have antici- 
pated the effects, and communicated them to me, was brought 
forward. 

'• On the 19th October, as soon as I felt confident of success, 
I addressed a note to my former partner, Dr. Wells, informing See p. 91 
him of what I had done, and asking him to come to Boston and 
assist me in bringing the discovery into use in dentistry. He re- 
plied by the letter in the appendix, of October 20, 1846. He 
came to Boston ; saw several experiments in my office; expressed 
himself alarmed ; said I should kill some one yet, and break my- 
self up in my business. He left abruptly, but without intimating g ^ p tt 
a claim to the discovery, although he could recognise the ether, Eddy, page 
and was freely told that it was ether. I have also the authority 397. 
of Dr. Warren and Dr. Hayward for saying that no allusion 
was made by Dr. Wells to ether, to their knowledge, when he 
made his experiment in Bostoti, in 1844-'5. 

'*! am aware that a communication to an institution whose ob- 
jects are scientific, and not personal, gives me no right to ar^ue 
the question of my own claim to a discovery, in opposition to the 
claims of others. I have endeavored to state no facts but such 
as fairly illustrate the history of this demonstration. If these 
have any bearing upon the claims of others, I am entitled to the 
benefit of the effect. But this memoir is n9t intended to pre- 
sent the whole of my comparative rights, as against the claims of 
Dr. Jackson or Dr. Wells. If a tribunal were opened for such 
a discussion, I would most cheerfully prepare for the hearing, and 
submit myself to the judgment of any enlightened umpire. I 
have proposed such a course to Dr. Jackson, who has declined it. 

^*In justice to myself, I should say, that I took out my patent 
early, before I realized howextensively useful the discovery w^ould 
be, and beside the motive of profit and remuneration to myself, I 
was advised that it would be well to restrain so powerful an agent, 
which might be employed for the most nefarious purposes. I 
gave free rights to all charitable institutions, and offered to sell 
the right to surgeons and physicians for a very small price, such q -v^arren' 
as no one could object to paying, and reasonably to dentists. I p. 301. 
had little doubt that the proper authorities would take it out of 
private hands, if the public good required it, making the discov- 
erer, who had risked reputation, and sacrificed time and money, 
suc^h a compensation as justice required. But as the use has now 
become general and almost necessary, I have long since abandoned 
the sale of rights, and the public use the ether freely : and I be- 



56 

lieve I am the only person m the world to whom this discovery 
has, so far, been a pecuniary loss. 

^' Most respectfully, your obedient servant, 

^'W. T. G. MORTON. 
'' Boston, (U. S. A.,) July 31, 1847.'* 

This statement brings the discovery down to a time when it be- 
came fully established, and when complete publicity was given it 
by several successful operations under its influence in the Massa- 
chusetts Hospital. It is fully supported by Dr. Greorge Hay- 
ward, one of the surgeons in the Massachusetts General Hospital, 
and much in detail, by the testimony of disinterested witnesses. 
The following is a note from Dr. H. in reference thereto : 

"Boston, February 5th, 1852. 
"Dear Sir: The article by R. H. Dana, jr., esq., on the ether 
discovery, (Dr. Morton's Memoir,) which appeared in LittelFs 
Living Age for March, 1848, was read to me before it was printed ; 
and to my best knowledge and belief, all its statements are cor- 
rect. 

'•1 remain, very truly yours, &c., 

"GEO. HAYWARD. 
"Hon. Geo. T. Davis." 

It is proved that, -prior to 1844, Dr. Morton was associated in 
practice with Dr. Horace Wells as a surgeon dentist. That af- 
terwards he became a student af medicine with Dr. Charles T. 
Jackson, and a boarder in his family. That in pursuance of the 
suggestion of Sir Humphrey Davy, mentioned above, Dr. Weils 
was experimenting on nitrous oxide, and pi'ofessed to have been 
successful in sieveral instances in extracting teeth without pain 
from patients under its influence. That in the winter of 1844- %5 
Dr. Wells came to Boston and desired to make public exhibition 
of his alleged discovery, when Dr. Morton, as his friend, obtained 
permission for him to exhibit before a public assembly, and him- 
self assisted on the occasion. The experiment of Dr. Wells 
proved a failure; he was greatly mortified, and presently aban- 
doned the pursuit. 

It is very reasonable to suppose that this attempt of Dr Wells, 
although it lesulted unfortimately, did, in connexion with his 
profession and his previous studies, turn the mind of Dr. Morton 
still more strongly in that direction. He certainly had just reason 
to hope that, although nitrous oxide would not produce the 
desired result, he could find some other gas or vapor which 
would. He was young and ardent — a surgeon dentist with al- 
ready a large business, and he was condemned to witness daily 
the excruciating pain occasioned by his more difficult operations, 
especially wdien nervous and sensitive females were the subjects 



57 

It is natural to suppose that a humane desire to remove so much 
suifering, and especially a prospect of the enviable reputation and 
high fortune which should attend such a discovery, caused it to 
take full possession of his mind. 

He was in a situation highly favorable to the progress of his 
inquiries. His facilities for study and the progress which he 
made grenerally in his profession, can hardly be better presented 
than in the following certificates and diploma : 

Harvard University. — Medical Matriculation. Mr. Wm. 
Thos. Green Morton has Matriculated. 

WALTER CHANNWG, Dean. 
Boston, JVoi*. 6, 1844. 

Harvard University. — Lectures on Anatomy and Siirgery, 
Admit W. T. G. Morton. 

.JOHN C. WARREN. 
A^ovemher, 1844. 

Harvard University. — Principles oj Surgery and Clinical 
Surgery, by Geo. Hayward, M. D. Admit W. T. G. Morton. 
- Aovemher^ 1844. 

Harvard University. — Lectures on Materia Medica, bv Jacob 
BiGELow, M. D. Admit W. T. G. Morton. 

Boston, JS'ovemher, 1844. 

Harvard University. — Thzory and Practice of Physic^ by 
John Ware, M. D. Admit W. t. G. Morton. 

JSTovember, 1844. 

Harvard University. — Theory and Practice of Midwifery 
and Medical Jurisprudence, by Walter Channiis^g, M. D- Ad- 
mit W. T. G. Morton. 

Boston, J^ov ember ^ 1844. 

Harvard University. — Ijectures on Chemistry. Admit Mr. 
W. T. G. Morton. 

J, W, WEBSTER, Professor 
Mov ember, IMA. 

Admit Mr. Wm. Thos. Green Morton to the Massachusetts 
General Hospital. 

■ Boston, JVovemher 6, 1844.. 



58 

This ticket admits Mr. W. T. G. Morton to the school of Prac- 
tical Anatomy, m Harvard University. 

1844-'5. SAMUEL PARKMAN. 

Harvard University. — Lectures on Anatomy and Surgery. 
Admit W. T. G. Morton. 

JOHN C. WARREN. 

Mocemher, 1845. 

Harvard University. — Principles of Surgery and Clinical 
Surgery, by George Hayward, M. D. Admit W. T. G. 

Morton. 

JVov ember, 1845. 

Harvard University. — Lectures on Materia Medica, by Jacob 
BiGELow, M. D. W. T. G. Morton. 

Boston, JVovember, 1845. 

Harvard University. — Theory and Practice of Physic, by 
John Ware, M. D. Admit "W. t. G. Morton. 

JYovember, 1845. 

Harvard University. — Theory and Practice of Midwijery, 
and Medical Jurisprudence, by Walter Channing, M. D. Ad- 
mit W. T. G. Morton. 

Boston, Jfovemher, 1845. 

Harvard University. — Lectures on Chemistry . Admit Mr. 
W. T. G. Morton. 

J. W. WEBSTER, Professor. 
JVovember, 1845. 

Admit Mr. Wm. Thos. Green Morton to the Massachusetts 
General Hospital, four months. 

Boston, JS/ovember 5. 

Projessores et Curator es Senatiis Medici Universitatis Wash- 

ingtonianics. Baltimorensis omnibus has litter as visuris, sal- 

utem. 

Nos summa Reipublics Marilandiae auetoiitate instructi, certi- 
oresfacimus omnes ad quos hee litteyee nostrae pervenerint, virum 
ornatissimum W. T. G. Morton artis Medicse et Chirurgicse 
studiis excultum, in sessione nortra solemni, apud Nos esse com- 
probatum. Quocirca eidem W. T. G. Morton Doctoris Medici 
Graduffi, majore sufFragiorum numero concessimus, eumque sing- 
ulis inter nos et alibi genitum privilegiis et juribus ad gradum 
istum pertinentibus, frui jussimus. 

Cujus rei quo major sit fides, Prsesentes Has, Collegii Sigillo et 
chirographis nostris munitas, dare placuit. 



59 

Datum Baltimori Die Mensis Cal Martis annoque Salutis Re- 
pa ratae 18. 
Johannes C. S. Monkur, M. D., Prax. et Theoret. Med. 

Professor. 
GuLiELMus H. Stokes, M. D., Inst, Med. Med. Jurisp. et 

Insen. Professor, 
Georgium McCook, A. M. M. D., Professor Chirurgiee. 
Geo. C. M. Roberts, M. D. D. D., Ohstet, et MuL et Inf. Morh, 

Professor. 
Tho. E. Bond, A. M. M. D., Therap. Mat. Med. et Hyg. Pro- 
fessor. 
Rege N. Wright, A. M., M. D., Chem. Professor. 
Georgium McCotjK, A. M., M. D., Professor Anitomiee. 
J. V. McJilton, * ] 

Z. Collins Lee, ! 

Benjamin Kurtz, D. D., [curatores. 

Johannes G. Morris, D. D., \ 
[seal.] Hugh Jenkins, 

J. T. Mackenzie, M. D., 

To the Secretary of the Executive Committee of the American 
Society of Dental Surgeons : 

Mr. W. T. G. Morton, dentist, entered his name with me as a 
student of medicine March 20, 1844, and attended to practical 
anatomy, in the Massachusetts Medical College, during the win- 
ter of that year, where he dissected with diligence and zeal, and 
paid special attention to the anatomy of the head and throat — 
parts of human anatomy particularly important to the surgeon 
dentist. He also studied Bell's and other standard w^orks on 
anatomy, and attended the lectures of Drs. Warren, Hay ward, 
and other professors. I w^ould recommend him as a suitable per- 
son for admission as a dental surgeon. He is a skilful operator 
in dentistry, both in surgical and mechanical departments, and 
has studied the chemical properties of the ingredients required for 
the raanafacture of artificial teeth. 

CHARLES T. JACKSON, M. D. 

Prior to this time. Dr. Jackson had, as he states, recommended 
chloric ether as an external application to allay pain in the teeth 
and gums ; and had furnished several dentists in Boston, his 
friends, with the article in its purity ; he does not name Dr. Mor- 
ton among the number ; but from the relations which subsisted 
between them, from the fact that Dr. Morton was at that time 
the family dentist of Dr. Jackson, as well as his student in medi- 
cine, your committee think the statement of Dr. Morton, in this 
particular, supported by that of Dr. Jackson. Add to this the 
fact, well known at the time to college students, and especially 



60 

to students of chemistry and medicine, that the vapor of sulphuric 
ether inhaled for a short time allayed pain, and we have the 
circumstances which would naturally direct the mind of the in- 
quirer to that substance as one whose inhalation would be proba- 
bly safe, and which would render the patient insensible during a 
short but painful operation. As additional proof of the direction 
of Dr. Morton's studies, and that he had the means in his power of 
knowing all that was known of this agent then familiarly used 
as a nepenthe, your committee are referred to a bill of books pur- 
chased by Dr. Morton of B. B. Mussey, of Boston, on the 3d of 

F.257. May, 1845. ximong them is Pereria's Materia Medica, which 
contains the following sentence : "The vapor of ether is inhaled 
in spasmodic asthma, chronic catarrh, dyspepsia, and whooping 
cough, and to relieve the effects caused by the accidental inhala- 
tion of chloric gas.^^ Its intoxicating or stupifying effects were, 
as we have already said, well known to students and scientific 
men. 

On the 30th of June, 1846, three months before the discovery 

P. 196 ^^^ made public, it appears, by the statement of Richard H. 
Dana, jr.. Attorney at Law, and by a charge in his books, that 
an article of agreement was entered into by Dr. Morton and G. 
G. Hayden, by which the latter agreed to take charge of the 
business of Dr. Morton for a tune ; Dr. Morton giving to Mr. 
Dana as a reason of his entering into ths arrangement, that he 
wished to give his attention to another matter of great import- 
ance, which, if successful, would revolutionize the practice of 
dentistry. 

This conversation was shortly after detailed by Richard H 
Dana, jr., to Dr. Francis Dana, jr., whose corroborative evidence 
puts the substance of the conversation beyond question, and the date 
is fixed by that of the instrument and the entry above referred to. 

Grenvilie G. Hayden testifies — 

"That, about the last of June, 1846, Dr. William T. G. Mor- 
ton called upon me at my office. No. 23, Tremont Row, and 
s^tated to me that he wished to make some arrangements with me 
that would relieve him from all care as to the superintendence of 
those employed by him in making teeth, and all other matters in 
his office. He stated, as a reason for urging me to superintend 
his affairs in his office, that he had an idea in his head, connected 
with dentistry, which he thought ' would be one of the greatest 
things ever known,' and that he wished to perfect it, and give his 
whole time and attention to its development. Being extremely 
urgent in the matter, I made an engagement with him the same 
day, according to his request. I then asked him what his ' secret' 
was. '^ Oh,' said he, 'you will know in a short time.' I still in- 
sisted upon knowing it, and he finally told me the same night — 



61 

to wit : the night of the last day of June. 1846, aforesaid — that 
' it was something he had discovered which would enable him to 
extract teeth w^ithout pain.' I then asked him if it was not what 
Dr. Wells, his former partner, had used ; and he replied, * No ! 
nothing like it;' and, furthermore, *that it was something that 
neither he nor any one else had ever used.' He then told me he had 
already tried it upon a dog, and described its effects upon him, 
vvhich (from his description) exactly correspond with the effects of 
ether upon persons who have subjected themselves to its influence, 
under my observation. Ail this happened in June, 1846. He then 
requested me not to mention what he had communicated to me." 

Francis Whitman testifies as follows — 

"I have oRen heard Dr. Morton speak about discovering some 
means of extracting teeth without pain. This discovery appeared 
to be the subject of his thoughts and investigations duiing the 
greater part of last year, i. e., 1846. One day — I think it was 
previous to July, 1846 — Dr. M.,in speaking of the improvements 
he had made in his profession, and of some one improvement in 
particular, said, if he could only extract teeth without pain, he 
'would make a stir.' 1 replied, that I hardly thought it could be 
done. He said he believed it could, and that he would find out 
something yet to accomplish his purpose. In conversation with 
Dr. M., some time in July, he spoke of having his patients coming 
in at one door, having all their teeth extracted without pain and 
without knowing it, and then going into the next room, and 
having a full set put in. 

" I recollect Dr. Morton came into the office one day in great 
glee, and exclaimed, thrt he had 'found it,' and that he could ex- 
tract teeth without pain ! I don't recollect what lollow^ed ; but, 
soon after, he wanted one of us in the office to try it, and he then 
sent William and Thomas out to hire a man to come and have an 
experiment tried upon him. After all these circumstances hap- 
pened. Dr. Hayden advised Dr. Morton to consult with some 
chemist in relation to this discovery. I went, at Dr. Morton's 
request, to see if Dr. Jackson had returned, (he having been ab- 
sent from the city,) but found that he was still absent." 

From this testimony, corroborative of the statement of Dr. 
Morton, it does, in the opinion of your committee, sufficiently ap- 
pear that he w^as, prior and subsequent to the 30th of June, 1846, 
intent upon the discovery of some anaesthetic agent which would 
enable hira to extract teeth without pain ; and that he had faith 
and confidence that he was on the point of making the discovery- 
He says, in his narrative, that the anffisthetic agent which he 
then had in view was sulphuric ether, and the proof adduced is, 
in the opinion of your committee, equally conclusive in support 
of that fact. 



62 

Theodore Metcalf sailed for Europe in the ship " Joshua Bates" 
on the 6th day of July, 1846, on a tour, from which he returned 
in the fall of 1847. We give below a note addressed by him to 
Br. Morton ; and an extract from a letter to the trustees of the 
General Hospital, each a letter to N. J. Bowditch, Esq., bearing 
directly on this point. 

In his note to Dr. Morton, dated December 20, 1847, he says : 
*^ I can only state that I remember to have met you at Mr. 
Burnett's store early in the summer of 1846, and to have had a 
conversation with you in regard to the medicinal quaLties of sul- 
phuric ether ^ a quantity of which you were then purchasing. I 
cannot, as you desire, give the precise date, but know it to have 
been previous to July 6, as I left Boston on that day for a tour, 
from which I have but a few w'eeks returned," 

"Boston, January 26, 1848. 

" Sir : In answer to your inquiry respecting the nature of my 
interview with Dr. Morton, I can only add to my note ot Decem- 
ber 20, that the conversation was commenced by some inquiry on 
his part, concerning the nature and effects of sulphuric ether, a 
vial of which he then held in his hand. 

"In answer to his several questions, I gave him such informa- 
tion as he could have obtained from any intelligent apothecary at 
that time, and also related to him some personal experience as to 
its use as a substitute for the nitrous oxide ; adding the then gen- 
erally received opinion, that its excessive inhalation would produce 
dangerous, if not fatal consequences. Some reference was made — 
but whether by Mr. Morton or myself, I cannot remember — to the 
successful experiments of his former partner, Mr. Wells, with the 
nitrous oxide. It was one of those casual conversations which 
quickly pass from the mind ; and it was for the first time recalled 
to my memory, upon seeing, months after, in a French journal, an 
account of the anaesthetic effects of ether, the discovery of which 
was ascribed by the writer to a Boston dentist. 

'•I am, sir, verv respectfully, your obedient servant, 

"THEODORE METCxiLF. 

"N. I. Bowditch, Esq." 

In his letter to the trustees of the Massachusetts General Hos- 
pital, dated Boston, January 6th, 1849, Mr. Metcalf says : 

" This belief is founded partly upon my memory of the con- 
versation with Morton and partly upon the fact that, when in Italy y 
months after y I saw for the first lime an account of etherization 
in a French journal, in v)hich its discovery was ascribed simply 
to a 'Boston dentist ;' I said at once that I was sure Morton must 
he the man, for he was engaged upon ether before I left home, 
and that I now knew why he had been so curious, and at the 
same time shy in his conversation with m«." 



63 

If we consider the then pursuit of Dr. Morton, his earnest de- See Wig^t- 
sire for information and his anxiety to preserve his secret, his shy-°^*"'^' 
ness with others and his comparative freedom in conversation with See Met- 
Mr. Metcalf will be fully explained Mr. Metcalf was a chemist calf, p.. 222. 
possessed of all the current scientific knowledge of his profession, 
and he was just setting out on a voyage to Europe, so that Dr,. 
Morton could avail himself of his knowledge and his suggestions 
with safety to his secret. 

Dr. Hayden says that "about the first of August, 1846, Dr. 
Morton asked me where he could get some pure ether, and asked 
me to go to Joseph Burnett's apothecary shop and purchase a 
four-ounce vial full of ether, which he said he wished to carry 
home with him, he being about to leave town for Needham, 
where he then resided. And about the same time he explained 
to me the nature and effects of ether, and told me that if he 
could get any patient to inhale a certain quantity of ether gas, 
it would cause insensibility to the pain of extracting teeth, and 
he tried to induce me to take it. Dr, Morton said he had 
breathed it himself, and it would do no harm ; and heat the same 
time tried to induce three young men in the office to take the gas. 
This was in August, 1846. He was contmually talking about 
his discovery to me. From the time I engaged with Dr. M. as 
as aforesaid, he frequently stated to me that he had nearly per- 
fected every department in dentistry, save extracting teeth with- 
out pain, and that he was determined to accomplish that also,. 
But towards the last of September following, he intimated to me, 
that, in some particulars, his discovery did not work exactly 
right, and, in my presence, was consulting his books to ascertain 
something further about ether." 

The inquiry made of Dr. Hayden for a chemist of whom pure 
sulphuric ether could be obtained, was probably to avoid going 
too frequently to the same place for the ether, and thus exciting 
inquiry which might lead to a discovery of his secret ; and at 
last he rnay have sent Dr. Hayden, instead of going himself, for 
the same purpose. We find here as early as August 1, 1846, the 
anesthetic agent, sulphuric ether, connected by Dr. Morton with 
the object of his pursuit. 

Shortly after this, and prior to the 28th of September, 1846, 
Dr. Morton called upoa Mr. Wightman, a well known maker of g^^ vYi«5-ht- 
philosophical instruments and apparatus in Boston, told him that man. 
he had abandoned his views of increasing the security of artificial 
teeth by atmospheric pressure, which he found to be erroneous, 
and was engaged upon something of a much greater importance 
to his profession. He then wished him to show him some gas 
bags of India-rubber cloth made for retaining gas, and inquired 
whether it would do to put sidphuric ether in them. Not being 
able to give Dr. Morton satisfactory information on the subject, 
he advisei! him to call on Dr. Jackson, which he said he would 



64 

do. About this time sonie sulphuric ether was procured for Dr. 
Morton, not in his own name, and brought to his office by WiJliam 
P. Leavitt, one of the young men in his employment. Another 
SeeLeavitt, of the young men, Thomas R. Spear, Avas first prevailed upon to 
^ inhale the vapor, but the effect on him was far from being satis- 

factory. Leavitt then took it, also with no satisfactory result, 
and Dr. Morton Avas for a time greatly disheartened. (See de- 
positions of Leavitt and Spear, pp. 196, 219.) He complained to 
Dr. Hayden that, in some particulars, his discovery did not work 
exactly right, and, " in my presence," says the witness, "was 
consulting his books to ascertain something further about ether." 
We find this statement fully sustamed by the testimony of Fran- 
cis Whitman. He says : 

■'I told Dr. Morton I knew what it was that Wilham had 
brought, and said it was chloric ether. Dr. M. then said he 
wished to know if ether would dissolve India-rubber, and sent 
Wm. P. Leavitt to inquire of Dr. Gay if it would. About this 
time Dr. M. asked me to get the books on chemistry, and find what 
they said about ether. I did so, and read it over to him, and I 
think he went to Burnett's to see if he could find something 
there." 

Your committee are satisfied from the statement of Dr. Mor- 
ton, and from the evidence by which it is thus far fully corrobo- 
rated, that prior to and on the 80th of September, 1S46, he was 
occupied with the conviction that an anaesthetic agent might be 
discovered which would remove all insensibility to pain in pa- 
tients submitted to the operations of the dentist ; that sulphuric 
ether was the agent ; and that perfect success required only full 
assurance of its safety, either of a good quality, and the proper 
mode of administering it ; that he sought assurance of these by 
consulting books to which he had access, and learned men from 
whom he could obtain the current knowledge and experience of 
the day. 

On the 30th of September, 1846, as he declares, he called on 
Dr. Jackson with a view of obtaining such information as would, 
if possible, remove the difficulties which he had encountered, and 
at the same time with a determination to conceal from him the 
object of his long and earnest pursuit, lest his hint should be 
taken and he be anticipated in this discovery. There were four 
persons present at this interview, and each gives an account dif- 
ferent from the rest as to what occurred at it. All, however, 
agree in one particular, namely, that Dr. Morton assumed total 
ignorance of sulphuric ether, its nature and qualities, and left the 
impression on the minds of those present that he knew nothing 
of it. That he did at that time in fact know much of sulphuric 
ether; that it had for many months preceding, been the subject 
of his earnest thought and sedulous inquiry; that his mind was so 
much possessed with it that he feared, in every one with whom 



65 

he conversed, a rival who might anticipate him in the discovery 
and development of its qualities, is proved to the entire satisfac- 
tion of your committee. A former committee of this House, to 
whose able report we shall often have occasion to refer, speaking 
of the disguise thus practised by Dr. Morton, says : 

^* This does not militate against the general effect of the state- 
oaent of Dr. Morton. He went, as he says, to Dr. Jackson to 
obtain certain information ; but at the same time anxious to con- 
ceal from him the object of his pursuit, being fearful lest Dr. 
Jackson might anticipate him in bringing the discovery to perfec- 
tion. We deal with this matter as a question of fact, not of mor- 
als, and do not decide whether Dr. Morton might consistently, 
with the obligations which truth imposes, use artificial means to 
conceal a mental conception which he did not wish to divulge. 

We believe, however, where a person has a right to his secret, 
and is under no obligations to disclose it, a direct denial of that 
which was the fact, for the purpose of such concealment, has not 
been visited with strong moral censure. We would instance the 
oase of Walter Scott at the table of George IV, who, when toasted 
by his majesty as the author of Waverly, declared he was not 
the author." 

Your committee concur in the opinion that, if any moral censure 
is to be visited upon Dr. Morton for a studied concealment of his ; 

possession of what he deemed to be a treasure above all price, and 
for the safety of which he so much feared, that censure must be 
slight indeed. His account of the interview will be found in his 
memoir to the Academy of Arts and Sciences at Paris, above set 
out. 

Dr. Jackson, who iirst publicly made claim to the discovery 
after its immense importance was established by several sale and 
painless operations under its influence ia the Medical Hospital, 
avers that he first disclosed to Dr. Morton the use of the vapor 
of pure sulphuric ether on the 30th of September ; that he then 
communicated to him his prior discovery of its anaesthetic qualities, 
and assured him that it would prevent all pain in a surgical oper- 
ation, and that it could be used with perfect safety * in short, 
that he, Dr. Jackson, then emplo)^ed Dr. Morton as his agent, 
operator, or "nz^r^e," to administer this pain-destroying vapor; 
and that then, in the presence of two witnesses, he distinctly took 
upon himself all the responsibijity of its administration. 

One of the witnesses present, George O. Barnes, sustains Dr. 
Jackson's statement in two material points, namely, that when ^j,fj.^ * * 
he advised the administration of sulphuric ether, he averred that 395. 
it would pynder the operation painless, and that it was safe, and 
he would be responsible for its consequences. 

The other witness, James Mclntire, though evidently testifying 
with a strong opinion against Dr. Morton, does not support Dr. 
Jackson on either of these important points. He says, Dr. Jack- 
5 _,. .. .. 



66 

son advised the use oi sulphuric ether : said it was safe, and that 
it '*' would make ihe patiems insensible, and" the operator "could 
do what he had a mind to with them." But he states no assump- 
tion of responsibility, and no opinion or ass^ranceof Dr. Jackson, 
that the vapor of s'aiphmic ether would render the patient so in- 
sensible as not to perceive pain. The evidence of these witnesses 
will be more paiticularly considered in another connexion. Suf- 
fice it for the present to say, that yaur committee are satisfied that 
Dr. Jackson did not, on that day. ^^ ex-pressly^^ assume any euch 
responsibility. They cannot credit it, for it is proved by evidence, 
and was admitted in the argument by Dr. Jackson's couiisel before 
a ibrmer committee of this House, that the morning after the suc- 
cessful operation of September 30, when the same was reported to 
him, he rehised a certificate in writing to Dr. ^forton that the 
vapor might be inhaled with safety. Dr. Jackson could not, as an 
honorable man, have taken the lesporjsibility orally of the exhi- 
bition of a medical prescription, claimed as his Own, and exhibited 
by an agent or operator under his iflstruction ; and, forthwitli, 
thereafter, have refused to assume the same responsibility in wri- 
ting. Arwi, indeed, it. is usual for physicians to give their pre- 
scriptions in writing, not orally. Nor do your committee Relieve 
that Dr. Jackson on that occasion declared that the inhalation of 
the vapor oi suJj^huric ether, vrithin safe and proper limits, would 
render the operation painless. If he had advanced such an opin- 
ion, it could not have failed to be noticed and remembered by his 
student, Mr. Mclntire, for it would have been the first notice to 
him of a miracle in surgerv. Eut Dr. Jackson's conversation with 
Mr. Caleb Eddy, on the 23d of October, 1846, and with the Hon\ 
Edward Warren, is, in the opinion of your committee, conclusive 
upon this subject. On the evening of that day Dr. Jackson visited 
Mr. Ed^y. and g^-ve an account of his conversation between him 
and Dr. Morton, of September 30, which the witness having de- 
tailed, says : "After Dr. Jackson had related the above, I said to 
him, -Dr. Jackson, did you know at such time, that after a per- 
son had inhakd ether, and was asleep, his flesh could be cut with 
a knife without his experiencing any pain?' He aeplied, 'No, 
nor Morton either ; he is a reckless man for using it as he has ; 
the chance is, he will kill somxcbody yet.'" And the Hon. E. 
Wanen, in his letter, says : '-Dr. Jackson told me, in substance, 
that the so-called discovery was not his, but that Dr. Morton w^as 
responsible for it; that the new use of ether was daingerous, and 
would, he feared, be attended with fatal consequences; that he 
(Dr. Jackson) was not answerable for the results, i\rA that, there- 
fore, he would refer me to Dr. Morton fcr further information." 

We cannot better express our views as to the interview of 30th 
September, and the exact value of the evidence which relates to 
it, than by quoting from the report of the foi'mer committee of 
this House, to which v%-e have already' refened. After a close 



67 

and careful cxaminatioD of the statements, and evidence in refer- 
ence to this interview, they say : 

"•'The evidsnce, then, amounts to this: Dr. Morton came into 
Dr. Jackson's office, having in his hand a gas bag, with which he 
p-roposed to operate on the imagination x)f a relractory patient by 
administering to her atmospheric air. Br. Jackson ridiculed the 
idea. Nitrous oxide was spoken of: Dr. Jackson objected to 
that, saying to Mr. Morton that if he attempted to make it, it 
would become nitric oxide. He then suggested sulphuric ether, 
and said it would make the patient insensible, and Morton could 
do what he pleased with her. This conversation, it will be noted, 
all took place about a refractory patient ; the object considered 
was the mode of bringing a nervous patient to a condition in 
which she could be operated upon, not in which si e would feel no 
pain from the operation. Mr, Mclntire says not one word ulyont 
pain or its absence in the operation, but that the operator could 
do what he pleased with the patient under the influence of sul- 
phuric ether. If this conclusion be correct, the information given 
by Dr. Jackson to Dr. Morton was no more than the current 
knowledge of the age — no more than he would have been told by 
any scientific man, or than he would have read in books which 
treat of chemistry and medicine ; and if it differed in anything 
from the general opinion of Bcientific men, it was in a stronger 
than ordinary assurance that the vapor w^as not injurious to 
health. At the same time, it is very clear to your committee 
that Dr. Morton relied more implicitly on information which he 
obtained from Dr. Jackson than from any other source, and that 
tiie information was given with the unhesitating confidence arising 
from a consciousness of high scienti'fic attainments. 

"This view of the subject awards to Dr. Jackson the irierit of 
greatly aiding by his advice and instructions -in the discovery. 
He did not himself produce the result, v/hich was new; or by his 
information carry knowledge in that direction, beyond the point 
it had alreadj reached. He was a s<ife and reliable guide to its 
then utmost limit in that direction — the Calpe and Abyla of 
scientific research — but left the sea beyond to be explored by 
others." 

Doctor Morton having obtained such further information of the 
properties and preparation of sulphuric ether as Dr. Jackson could 
give him, and having heard from him an opinion that it might be 
administered safely, returned to his house, procured a fresh sup- 
ply of the ether, and, as he says, tried upon himself the experi- 
ment of its inhalation, the manner and effects of which are fully 
Btated in his memoir above set forth. We have no teason to 
doubt the entire truth and accuracy of this statement, though 
from the nature of the transaction he cannot verify it by direct 
<eyidlej3€e. Almost immediately after he recovered consciousness. 



68 

and while he was elate with the success of his recent experiment, 
and full of fresh and newly awakened confidence, a stout laboring 
man, in agony with the tooth-ache, entered and desired to have 
his tooth extracted, but slirunk from the apprehended pain. He 
asked to be mcsmerizefl. Dr. Morton told hirn he had a better 
application than mesmerism, which he proposed to use. The man 
without much inquiry, on the assurance that it was safe anJ would 
alleviate the pain, consented, and in five minutes after he had 
taken his seat in the operator's chair the great discovery was 
verified. 

The special circumstances attendant on this first actual experi- 
ment, were most fortunate for Dr. Morton — for the cause of sur- 
gical science, and for the human race. The patient, owing to 
his intense sufFeriDg, was glad to avail himself of anything, real 
or imaginary, to relieve the pain which he felt, and to mitigate 
that Avhich he feared. He therefore inhaled the vapor freely, and 
delighted with the soothing lenitive, he continued to inhale it 
eagerly, until anesthesia being complete, he had forgotten his 
past sufferings and w^as beyond the reach of present pain. He 
was a man of vigorous constitution ; he immediately rallied, un- 
conscious of the operation which had been performed, and wholly 
relieved from the pain which so lately afflicted him. If in his 
stead, the boy, who sickene.:! with the inhalation, and whose 
parents, believing him poisoned, threatened a prosecution, had 
been the first subject, the experiments would probably have gone 
no further ; Dr. Morton would have been overwhelmed with Cexi- 
sure and ridicule, and we do not think that either of the contest- 
ants would have come in to assert his claim to the disgrace of the 
failure. Considering.the result, it is not a matter of surprise that 
Dr. Morton Y/as elate with his success. He immediately announced 
it to those about hirn, though he concealed from them all, except 
Hay den, the agent with Vv'hich the ansesthesia had been effected. 
He immediately obtained the certificate of Eben Frost, the subject 
of his experiment, (which will be found on page 257.) consulted 
with Dr. Hayden about testiiig his pain-subduing vapor in some 
operation in the hospital, and next morning called on Dr. Jackson, 
informed him of the success of the experiment, and asked him for 
a certificate that the vapor was harmless in its effects. This Dr. 
Jackson refused to give him. 

Dr. Morton gives, in the paper above set forth, the subsequent 
steps taken by him to perfect and verify his discovery. His gen- 
eral narrative of alternate success and discoiiragement in the 
cases arising in his office is i'ully corroborated by Dr. Hayden, 
He says : 

*' The first succt^ssful experiment upon any patient was made 
September 30, 1846, by inhaling ether through a folded cloth, 
and on that occasion a tooth wa^ extracted without pain. We 
tried repeated experiments wi^h the same means subsequently, and 



69 

they ail resulted in tola! failareg. Dr. M. said that Dr. Jackson 
recommended a Certain apparatus, which he lent Dr. Morton 
from his laboratory, consisting of a glass tube of equal size 
throughout, having a neck, and being about three feet long. 
This was likewise a total failure. So far, all our experiments, 
with one exception, proving abortive, we found that a different 
apparatus must be obtained, and it was at this time that Dr. M. 
procured from Mr. Wightman, of Cornhill, a conical glass tube, 
with which, by inserting a sponge saturated with ether in the 
larger end, we had better success, and our experiments began to 
assume a more promising aspect. 

"'• Still, our success was not uniform, and far from perfect. At 
this time, Dr. M., suggested that our failures might be ov/ing to 
the fact that, in all our experiments so far, the patient had breathed 
the expired vapor back into the vessel, thus inhaling the same 
over and over. He then stated that the expired air should pass of 
into the surrounding atmosphere, and wished me to make a pat- 
tern for an apparatus by which the air should pass into the vessel, 
combine with ether, be inhaled into the lungs, and the expired 
air thrown off into the room. This idea, as thus forced upon 
him, and communicated to me, was fully elaborated, and corres- 
ponds most accurately with the apparatus now in use in this country 
and in Europe, and for which Dr. M. has applied for letters pat- 
ent. I replied, that he had explained his idea so clearly that he 
would have no difficulty in directing a philosophical-instrument 
maker to manufacture a proper inhaler at once, without a pattern, 
and recommended him to Mr. Chamberlain, in School street, to 
whom he applied accordingly, and who made, as thus desired, the 
first inhaler. And with such an apparatus, we have had uniform 
success to this day, the results of which are known to the world. 

^^ And I will here state that, on the evening of the oOth of Sep- 
tember, after the first experiment had been made with success, Dr. 
Morton spoke about going to the hospital and using the ether fhere, 
and thus bring out the new discovery. After several other suc- 
cessful experiments, the question came up anew how to introrluce 
]t to the world, when Dr. M. stated that Dr. Jacksoi^ had declined 
to countenance it, or aid in bringing it out, and then he (Dr. M.) 
said he would see Dr. Warren, and have his discovery inLroduced 
into the Massachusetts General Hospital. He went out and soon 
returned, stating that Dr. W. had agreed to afford him an opportu- 
nity to apply the vapor, as soon as practicable, in the hospital." 

So much for what occurred in the office of Dr. Morton, his dif- 
ficulties, and the skill and energy with which he overcame them. 
But his discovery was now to come before the world, and from 
the time of its advent, witnesses multiply on us in numbers too great 
for all to receive even a passing notice. The following is an ac- 
count given by Dr. Hay ward., a short time after, of the first in- 



70 

troduction of the vapor of ether into the Massachusetts General 
Hospital — 

'* The ether was administereci at the hospital by Dr. Morton on 
the 16th of October, to a man upon whom Dr. Warren was to 
operate for a tumor on the face. The effect in this case was not 
complete ; the suffering, however, was very much less than it 
would have been under ordinary circumstances, and the result was 
on the whole so satisfactory that a second trial w^as made on the 
fbllowing- day. 

"'^The patient to whom the ether was administered on the 17th 
of October was a female with a fatty tumor on the arm, between 
the shoulder and the elbow. At the request of Dr. Warren I did 
tiie operation. The patient w^as insensible during the whole time, 
and was entirely unconscious. The operation lasted about seven 
minutes, but could not be regarded as a severe one. 

*' These are the first surgical operations, except those of den- 
tistry, that were performed on patients while under the influence 
of the ether. 

'' On the 1st of November I took charge of the surgical depart- 
ment of the hospital ; and on the following day, in conversation 
with Dr. Warren, I stated that I did not intend to allow the me- 
dical patients to inhale this preparation of Dr. Morton (for we 
were then ignorant of the precise nature of it) during my period of 
service, unless all the surgeons of the hospital were told what it 
was, and were satisfied of the safety of using it. Dr. Warren 
agreed with me as to the propriety of this course. 

'' On the 6th of November, Dr. Morton called at my house and 
asked me if I was willing to have his preparation inhaled by a pa- 
tient, whose limb I was to amputate on the following day. I told 
him of the conversation I had had with Dr. Wi.rren on the subject. 
Dr. Morton at once said he was ready to let us know what the 
article was, and to give the surgeons of the hospital the right to 
use it there when they pieased. He added, that he w^ould send 
me a letter in the course of the day to this effect. I requested 
him to direct it to Dr. Warren, as he was the senior surgeon, and 
told him that I would submit it to my colleagues at a consulta- 
talion to be held on the following morning. He wrote the letter 
accord higly ; the subject was maturely considered by the surgeons, 
who were unanimously of opinion that the ether should be inhaled 
by the individual who was to undergo the operation that day. 

** The patient was a girl of twenty years of age, named Alice 
Mohan, who had suffered two years from a disease of ttie knee, 
which terminated in suppuration of the joint and caries of the 
bones. For some months before the operation, her constitutional 
symptoms had become threatening, and the removal of the limb 
seemed to be the only chance for her life. The ether was admin- 
lered by Dr. Morton. In a little more than three minutes she was 
brought under the influence of it : the limb was removed, and all 



71 

the vessels were tied but the last, which was the sixth, before she 
gave any indication of consciousness or suffering. She then groan- 
ed and cried out faintly. She afterwards said that she was wholly 
unconscious and insensible up to that time, and she seemed to be 
much surprised when she was told that her limb w^as off. She 
recovered rapidly, suffering less than patients usually do after am- 
putation of the thigh, regained her strength and flesh, and was 
discharged well on the 22d of December.'' 

Nor are there wanting abundant contemporary papers attesting 
the discovery, recognising Dr. Morton as its author, and showing- 
its rapid advance to the full confidence of the public. 

We give below a copy of the letter written by Dr. Haywood, 
at the request of Dr. Warren, inviting Dr. Morton to attend at the 
first of the above named surgical operations, and administer to the 
patient : 

-'• Dear Sir : I write at the request of Dr. J. C. Warren, to 
invite you to be present on Friday morning at 10 o'clock at the 
hospital, to administer to a patient, who' is then to be operated 
upon, the preparation which you have invented to diminish the 
sensibility to pain. 

" Yours, respectfully, 

" C. F. HAYWOOD, 

'• House Surgeon to the General Hospital, October hiih, 1846. 
" Dr. Morton, Tremont Roiv.^^ 

Dr, Haywood states above, that Dr. Morton, on the 6th of No- 
vember, 1846, addressed a letter to Dr. Warren, informing him 
that fhe anaesthetic agent which he used was the vapor of sul- 
phuric ether, and offering the free use of it to the hospital. We 
give below the correspondence : 

*' Dear Sir : As it may sometimes be desirable that surgical 
operations should be performed at the Massachusetts General 
Hospital under the influence of the preparation employed by me 
for producing temporary insensibility to pain, you will allow me, 
through you, to offer to the hospital the free use of it for ali the 
hospital operations. I should be pleased to give to the surgeons 
of the hospital any information, iu addition to what they now 
possess, which the}' may think desirable in order to employ it 
with confidence. I will also instruct such persons as they may 
select, connected with the hospital, in the mode of employing it. 
This information, I must request, should be regarded as confi- 
dential, as I wish for ample time to make such modifications as 
experience may suggest in its exhibition. It is also my intention 
to have persons suitably instructed, who will go wherever desired, 
for a reasonable compensation, and administer it for private oper- 
ations ; thus enabling any surgeon to employ it in his private 
pr?ictice whenever he may have occasion. I think you will agree 



72 

^ys^ilh me that this will be wiser, until its merits are fully estab- 
lished, than to put it into the hands of everybody, thereby bring- 
ing discredit upon the preparation by its injudicious employment. 
Should you wish me to administer at any of the operations to- 
morrow, I shall do so with pleasure ; and should the above 
proposition be deemed worthy of being entertained. I shall be 
ready to make the arrangement as soon as informed of your 
wishes. 

'* W. T. O. MORTON. 
''Br. J. C. Warren. 

" Dear Sir : I beg leave to acknowledge the reception of youj 
polite letter. I shall lose no time in laying it before the surgeons 
of the hospital. 

*^I remain, respectfully, yours, 

"J. C. WARREN. 
''Park street, JV'oveinher 6(h.'' 

We think proper, also, to insert two other notes, written De- 
cember 11th, 1846 ; one by Dr. Haywood, at the request of Dr. 
Warren; the other by Dr. Warren himself; both relative to an 
operation to be perfonned on the 12th ; also, a eerlificate of Dr. 
Wari^n, oi January 16th, 1847 : 

" Sir : I am requested- by Dr. Warren to ask you, if convenient 
to yourself, to administer your preparation to a patient from whom 
a part of the upper jaw is to be removed. The operation will 'be 
done by Dr. Warren to-morrow at 11 a. m. 

*< Yours, &c., C.F.HAYWOOD, 

'*M. G. Hospital, December 11, 1846. 
'' Dr. Morton, Trerao'nt Roio.'^ 

Dr. Morton — Bear Sir: I enclose a not«e which 1 have just 
received from Dr. Brown. I think there would be a propriety in 
granting his request. There will he an operation at the hospital 
to-morrow at 11 o'clock, at v*/hich I shall be glad to have your 
aid, if perfectly convenient. 

*' Truly yours, J. C. WARREN. 

*' 2 Park street, December 11.'' 

" Boston, January 6, 1847. 
"I hereby declare and certify, to the best of my knowledge 
and recollection, tl>at I never heard of the use of sulphuric ether 
by inhalation, as a means of preventing the pain of surgical opera- 
tions, unfil it was suggested by Dr. Morton in the latter part of 
October. 1846. 

'^JOHN C. WARREN, 
" Prof&ssor of Jinatomy and Surgery of the 

Massachusetts General Hospital/' 



73 

The papex'-s given above show how, in the ordinary course of 
things, a discovery like this inscribes itself at once on something 
more exact and more durable than mere human memory. 

Your committee will add to the above a letter from Dr. War- 
ren to their chairman, and a copy of the first entry in the records 
of the Massachusetts General Hospital, touching the introduction 
of sulphuric ether in their surgical operations : 

'^Boston, January 21, 1852. 

'' Sir : Having had the honor of receiving from you some ques- 
tions relating to the ethereal inhalation, I have made good and 
true answers thereto, which I beg leave to enclose, and with 
these a short statement of the first instance of ethereal inhala- 
tion, which the committee can refer to if their time and inclination 
permit. 

'' 1 have the honor to be, respectfully, 

'* Your obedient servant, 

''JOHN C. WARREN. 
' Hon. W. H. BissELL." 

" Boston, January 21, 1852. 

''1. Chloric ether and sulphuric ether are used in our liospital. 
Chloroform is not, having been known to be fatal in many cases. 
The first surgical operation with ether was done by me, at the re- 
quest of Dr.^Vm. T. G. Moxton, on the 16th of October, 1846. 
The circumstances of the ca?e are in a separate paper horewith 
enclosed. 

"2. Ether is used in our hospital in all operations accompanied 
with much pain. Its effect is very remarkable in the prevention 
of pain in all cases, when properly administered. In my address 
to the American Medical Association at Cincinnati, in May, 1850, 
I stated that I had myself employed sulphuric and chloric ether, 
or seen them employed in more than l,-300 cases. From that 
time to the present, I cannot speak ^vith numerical accuracy, but 
I suppose the cases have exceeded 1,000; thus making an aggre- 
gate of more than 2,500. In no one instance has any serious re- 
sult happeced to the patieeit within my knowledge. 

" 3. As to the diminution of mortality, it is entirely impossible 
to give any definite answer ; but the diminution of suflfering may 
be supposed to diminish mortality by removing one of its causes. 

''4. In my private practice I have always used ether for the 
prevention of pain u\ severe surgical operations, and usually, if 
not universally, with great relief to the patient and satisfaction to 
myself. 

•^^ 5. The medical faculty within my knowledge generally con- 
sider the application of ether to the prevention of pain as the most 
valuable addition to the means of relieving human suffering since 
the introduction of vaccination. 

''JOHN C. WARREN.'* 



74 

First case of ethereal inhalatioii. Copied from the surgical re- 
cords of the Massachusdts General Hospital. 

" This case is reinarkabie in the annals of surgery. It was the 
first surgical operation performed under the influence of ether. 
Dr. Warren had been iipplied to by Dr. Morto'n, a dentist, with 
the request that lie would try the inhalation of a fluid, which he 
said he had found to be eff'ectual in preventing pain during opera- 
tions on the teeth. Dr. Warren having satisfied himself that the 
breathing of the fluid would be harmless, agreed to employ it 
when an opportunit} presented. None occurring in private prac- 
tice within a day or two^ he determined to use it on this patient. 

** Before the operation began, some time was lost in waiting 
for Dr. Morton, and ultimately it was thought he would not ap- 
pear. At length he arrived, and explained his detention by in- 
forming Dr. Warren that he had been occupied in preparing his 
apparatus, which consisted of a tube connected with a glass globe. 
This apparatus he then proceerled to apply, and after four or five 
minutes the patient appeared to be asleep, and the operation was 
performed as above described. To the surprise of Dr. Warren 
and the other gentlemen present, the patient did not shrink nor 
cry out : but during the insulation of the veins he began to move 
his limbs and utter extraordinary expressions. These movements 
seemed to indicate the existence of pain, but after he had recov- 
ered his faculties he said he had experienced none, but only a 
sensation like that of scrapo)g the part with a blunt instrument, 
and he ever after continued to say he had not felt any pain. The 
result of this operation led to the repetition of the use of ether in 
other cases, and in a few days its succes was established, and its 
use resorted to in every consi'lerable operation in the city of Bos- 
ton and its vicinity." 

By these operations, performed in a pubHc hospital before pro- 
fessional men of the highest intelligence, and the perfect success 
of the ethereal vapoj in annihilating all pain, its evident safety, 
and the readiness of recovery from the anaesthetic state, which 
resembled the waking fron: a deep and quiet sleep, a profound 
impression was made upon the public mind. In that of the sur- 
gical faculty it rose to enthusiasm. The success of the discovery 
was established; Boston, its native city, was proud of its mater- 
nity, and it was about to be hailed in Europe, whither a power 
swifter than the winds was wafiing it, with wonder and applause. 

During all this {imit Dr. Morton alone claimed the discovery 
and conducted ilv..^ experiments. He had slaked every thing dear 
in life — his hopes of fortune and fame — upon the discovery. He 
gave his labor by day a^d his thoughts by night to the perfecting 
of all that was incomplete in its application ; and in the language 
of the report of the Trustees of the Massachusetts General Hos- 



75 

pital, -'it is a mortifying fact that Dr. Morton's pecuniary affairs 
have become embarrassed in consequence of the interruption of 
his regular business, resulting from his efforts and experiments in 
establishing this great truth, and that his health has also severely 
suffered from the same cause, so that he can devote only a small 
part of each day to his professional labors. He became poor in 
a cause which has made the work! his debtor. The committee 
have the highest medical authority (that of Dr. Homans) for say- 
ing that from living so much of late in an atmosphere of ether, 
and from the anxiety attending the various trials and experiments 
connected with the discovery, and from the excitement caused by 
the controversies which it has occasioned, the health of Dr. Mor- 
ton has become such that he is unable to attend to his professional 
duties to any extent." And it was not until all was complete 
and completely verified — not until some time after the operation 
of the 2d of January, 1847 — did any rival appear and publicly 
claim the discovery, or even a participation in it. 

Subsequent to that time, however, public claims to the wlaole 
honor of the discovery have been advanced and are now urged 
before your committee, by Dr. Charles T. Jackson for himself, 
and for Dr. Horace Wells, deceased, by his personal representa- 
tives. On both of these we have touched in our examination of 
the discovery as connected with Dr. Morton, and we now propose 
to give to the claim of each a separate examination. 

The first public appearance of Dr. Jackson at the hospital dur- 
ing the performance of an operation under the influence of the 
newly discovered aiuesthetic agent, is shovirn in the following ex- 
tract from a letter of Dr. S. D. Townsend, one of the surgeons of 
the hospital, dated January 29th, 1852 : 

" Dr. Jackson presented himself for the first time on the 2d of „ ^ g 
January, 1847, and brought with him a bag of oxygen gas as an jy^ Town- 
antidote to asphyxia. I have had this date always fixed in my send, p. 
mind by the fact that I performed an amputation on that day ^^'5- 
under the influence of ether, and this is also confirmed by the re- 
cords of the hospital." 

Dr. Jackson, in a letter addressed by him to Baron Von Hum- 
boldt, dated November 22, 1851, a copy of which he filed with 
your committee, in support of his claim to the discovery, after 
giving an account of the habitual use of the vapor of sulphuric 
ether for the purposes and in the manner which we have shown 
to have been familiar with the medical faculty, since about the 
year 1795, states the facts, and details the circumstances, which 
he alleges to have attended its inhalation by himself in the winter 
of 1841-'42; and gives at length what he says were his deductions 
from the phenomena consequent on that inhalation. He says : 

"The circumstances were as follows: In the winter of 1841-'42, 
1 was employed to give a few lectures before the Mechanics* 
Charitable As,sociation in Boston, and in my last lecture, vvliich I 



76 

think was in the month of February, I had occasion to show & 
number of experiments in iiliistration of the theory of volcanic 
eruptions, and for my experiments I prepared a large quantity of 
chlorine gas, collecting it in gallon glass jars over boiling water. 
Just as one of these large jars was filled wuth pure chlorine, it 
See J. D. overturned and broke, and in my endeavors to save the vessel, I 
Whitney, accidentally got my lungs full of chlorine gas, w^iich nearly sufFo- 
page 395. ^ated me, so that my life was in imminent danger. I immediately 
had ether and ammonia brought to me, and alternately inhaled 
them with great relief. The next morning my throat was severely 
inflamed and very painful, and I perceived a distinct flavor of 
chlorine in my breath, and my lungs were still much oppressed. 
I determined, therefore, to make a thorough trial of the ether 
vapor, and for that purpose went into my laboratory, which ad- 
joins my house in Somerset street, and made the experiment from 
which the discovery of ansesthesia was induced. I had a large 
supply of perfectly ])ure washed sulphuric ether which was pre- 
pared in the laboratory of my friend Mr. John H. Blake, of Bos- 
ton. 1 took a bottle of that ether and a folded towel, and seating 
myself in a rocking chair, and placing my feet in another chair, 
so as to secure a fixed position, as I reclined backward in the one 
in which I was seated. Soaking the towel in the ether, I placed 
it over my nose and mouth, so as to inhale the ether mixed wath 
the air, and began to inhale the vapor deeply into my lungs. At 
first the ether made me cough, but soon that irritability ceased, 
and I noticed a sense of coolness followed by warmth, fullness of 
the head and chest, wnth giddiness and exhilitation, numbness of 
the feet and legs followed, a swimming or floating sensation, as 
if afloat in the air. This vv^as accompanied with entire loss of 
feeling, even of contact with my chair in which 1 was seated. I 
noticed that all j)ain had ceased in my throat, and the sensations, 
which I had were of the snost agreeable kind. Much pleased and 
excited, I continued the inhalation of the ether vapor, and soon 
fell into a dreamy state, and then became unsconscious of all 
surrounding things. I know not how long I remained in tlmt 
state, but suppcee tlxat it could not be less than a quarter of an 
hour, judging from the degree of dryness of the cloth, w^hich dur- 
ing the state of unconsciousness had fallen from my mouth and 
nose and lay upon my breast. As I became conscious, I observed 
still there was no feefing of pain in ray throat, and my limbs w^ere 
still deeply benumbed, as if the nerves of sensation were paralyzed. 
A strange ti^.rilJing now began to be felt along the spine, but it 
was not in any way disagreeable. Little by little sensation began 
to manifest itself, first in the throat and body, and gradually ex- 
tended to the extremities, but it was sometime before full sensa- 
tion returned, and my throat became really painful. 

"Reflecting upon these phenomena, the idea flashed into my 
mind that I had made the discovery I had for so long a time been 
in quest of — a means of rendering the nerves of sensation tempo- 



77 

rarily insensible to pain^ so as to admit of the performance of a 
surgical operation on an individual without his suffering pain 
therefrom. That I did draw ihit< inference, and did fully declare 
my unqualified belief in both the sajeiy and efficiency of the 7nethod 
of destroying all sensation of pain in the human body, during 
the most severe surgical operations, no one doubts, arid it is fully 
proved by abundant legal evidence, which has never been impeach- 
ed or doubted in any quarter.^' 

*^I beg leave to refer you again to the evidence of Dr. Wil- 
liam F. Channing, a man ol science. Fellow of the American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences, son of the late Dr. William E. 
Channing, our most eminent divine. To the testimony of Dr. S. 
A. Bemis, one of our most eminent dentists. To the letter of 
•John H. Elake, a distinguished chemist ; and to the testimony of 
Mr. Henry D. Fowle, one of the best and most faithful apotheca- 
ries of Boston, (and to the letters of Dr. George T. Dexter, of 
New York, and of D. Jay Browne, of New York, obtained since 
this paper was written.) Their evidence, with that of my worthy 
friend and former pupil, Mr. Joseph Peahody, eletc ingenium a 
Vcole des mines at Paris prove that I had made this discovery, 
and long before any other person had even tried a single experi- 
ment of thje kind. (See also the new and very important evi- 
dence of Dr. George T. Dexter, of Nev/ York, and that of Mr. 
D. J. Browne.) 

*'In the rapid inductions of the mind it is not always easy to 
trace the exact method of thought by whicli we suddenly arrive 
at great truths. But so far as 1 can trace the reasoning that rap- 
idly flowed through my mind, it was based upon principles well 
understood by all eclucated physicians and physiologists. I knew 
that the nerves of sensation were distinct from that of motion and 
of organic life, and that one svstem might be paralyzed without 
necessarily or immediately affecting the others. I had seen often 
in my medical practice the nerves of sensation paralyzed without 
those of motion being effected, and those of motion paralyzed 
without those of sensation being influenced ; and both the nerves 
of motion and sensation paralyzed without the ganglionic nerves 
Or those of organic life being affecti^d. I knew, also, that the 
nerves of sensation are stationed as sentinels near the exterior of 
our bodies, to warn us of danger from external causes of injury, 
and that there is no feeling in the internal portions of our bodies. 
I knew, also, that when the knife is applied in surgical operations, 
that there is little sense of pain in any parts beneath the skin. 
This my own surgical experience, as well as that of others, had 
long ago demonstrated, and the phi]oso})hy of these physiologi- 
cal facts was made known to the medical world, in England and 
in this country, by the researches of Sir Charles Bell, of Eng- 
land, and was fully proved by all the eminent anatomists and phy-; 
biologists of Europe. Now, I had observed, 1st. That the nerves 



78 

of sensation in my own body were rendered insensible to pain for 
some time before unconsciousness took place. 

'^2d. Tiiat ail pain had ceased in a suffering part of my body 
during the stages of etherization preceding and following the un- 
conscious state. 

'•3d- That this slate of insensibility of the nerves of sensation 
continued for a sufficient length of time to admit of most surgi- 
cal operations, a<nd I had reason to believe that during the uncon- 
scious period the degree of insensibility was still greater, so that 
it would be impossible that any pain could be felt in a surgical 
operation. 

" 4th. That the nerves of motion and of the involuntary func- 
tions of respiration and circulation were in no wise affected ; the 
functions of life going on as usual, while the nerves of sensation 
"rfere rendered devoid of feehng, and the body rould suffer no 
pain. By long experience in the trial of ether vapor in spasmodic 
asthma, and from numerous carefully conducted physiological ex- 
periments, I had learned that the vapor of ether could be safely 
inhaled into the lungs to an extent before believed to be highly 
dangerous. (Wood and Bache's Dispensatory ; Beck's Medical 
Jurisprudence.) That I did first discover that the nerves of sen- 
sation could be and were paralyzed to all sensation temporarily 
and safely by the inhalation of ether vapor, is admitted by all 
scientific men loho have examined the evidence. That I did first 
prescribe its oAininisirnti'm for the purpose of preve7iti7ig all sen- 
sation of pain in surgical operations, v:ith the guarantee on my 
m-edical and scientific responsibility, of its entire safety, if my 
directions were strictly obeyed, and did thus introduce the use 
of pure sitiphuric ether m/ixed with air, into surgical practice, is 
fully proved by abundant testimony, and this is admitted by all 
persons 'who have examined the evidence that I have caused to be 
printed. 

"The only point contested by my opponents is, that in their 
opinion I bad not sufficient reason for draiving the inference that 
I did, as they admit, draw from my data, and that I could not 
have ** knoivn^' the full extent of the insensibility to pain of a 
surgical operation, and that this remained to be verified by actu- 
al trial. Now, it appears to me clear enough that when I had 
discovered that the nerves of sensation were paralyzed, that 1 
did /mazy that the body could feel no pain, and that my induc- 
tion was the most natural thing in the process of reasonmg from 
my w^ell ascertained data. To the ignorant it is easy to appeal 
by allegations, like those of my very unscientific opponents, that 
^Dr. Jackson could not have knoumf anterior to the verification 
experiments performed at the hospital, that the patient was 
wholly insensible to pain when under the influence of ether; but 
no scientific physiologist or physician can possibly entertain a 
doubt of the sufficiency of my evidence, that the body could 
feel no pain when the nerves of sensation u^ere rendered insensi- 



79 

hie. Again, it is claimed by my opiMnientS; that inducing an ig- 
norant dentist, a man of no medical knowledge, to perform the 
mere mechanical operations, under my advice and upon my med- 
ical responsibility, expressly assumed before v/itnesses, that I 
made him a co-partner or joint discoverer, and that he made the 
first application of my discovery. jV^ow, I respectfully dissent 
from this opinion, and, in my dissent, I aia sustained by the high- 
est scientific medical and legal authorities of this country, and by 
the most eminent men of science ot Europe, who have considered 
this question. I claim that 1 not only discovered the principle, 
but also by my advice and prescription, as above stated, made 
the application in the highest sense ot the term." 

Your committee will attempt to determine the weight which 
ought to be given to this statement : first, by collating it with 
other facts, in the case of which {Yiey can have no doubt ; second, 
by comparing it with other written statements of the same inci- 
dent, made by Dr. Jackson himself, of an earlier date : third, by 
considering its inherent probability when, viewed in connexion 
with Dr. Jackson's own well-established acts and omissions ; and, 
lastly, the extent to which it is supported or assailed by extrinsic 
evidence. 

A portion of tliis statement of Dr. Jackson struck your com- 
mittee with some surprise; that, namely, in which he says: 
'• That / did first prescribe its adniinistration for the purpose of 
preventing all sensation of pain in surgical operations, unth the 
guarantee my medical and scientific re.sponsihility, of its entire 
safety, if my instructions were strictly obeyed, and did then in- 
troduce the use of pure sulphuric eiher vapor, mixed with air, 
into surgical practice, is fvMy proved by ahimdant testimony, 
and this is admitted by all persons icho have examined the evi- 
dence that I have caused to be printed. The only point contested 
by my opponents is, that, in their opinion, I had not sufficient 
reason for draiving the inference that I did, os they admit, draw 
from my data, and that I could not liave ^ known^ the full ex- 
tent of the insensibility to pain of a surgical operation, and that 
this remained to be verified by actual trial." 

Tliis is, within the knowdedge of your committee, a wide de- 
parture from the actual state ofjact touching the controversy. ^^^ ^hc 
It is known to us, by numerous flocumeuts, printed and written, petition of 
that the positions which Dr. Jackson thus avers to hav»e been uni- Pj^ysicians 
versally conceded to him, are the very positions which has^e been p^o-e i8o' 
most constantly and strongly contested s'nce he first claimed for andpefition 
himself the merits of the discovery. It appears, too, that neither ^^ trustees 
of these points was conceded to him, but both adjudged against pj(.^j^^ ^^^~ 
him by the Massachusetts General Hospital in their report of Jan- 190.' 
uary, 1848, and most distinctly and emphatically so by the report 
of the committee of this House, ot Febm^ry 24, 1849. 

Tije hospital report notices this sid)j(M:t as follows : 

"' Down to September 80. 184G, Dr. Jackson had discovered 



80 

nothing that had not been known and in print in London for some 
years. It was known, that ether would produce insensibility ; 
that such insensibility, though sometimes fatal, was sometimes 
safe ; and that one of the properties of ether was its power to ob- 
viate the ill effects of an inhalation of chlorine gas. The discov- 
ery of the safety and efficacy of the inhalation of ether in surgi- 
cal operations had not yet been made ; the only experiments 
which Dr. Jackson had tried, or caused to be tried, being those 
already prescribed by the text-books. Dr. Jackson had for some 
time entertained a strong impression that could it be used with 
safety and effect during the operation of the dentist — a cofnjecture 
which a hundred other persons m,ay have made without discover- 
ing the fact ; and incidentally on more than one occasion, he had 
advised its use for that class of operations, but had been unable 
to persuade any one to use it, not even persons of science and in- 
telligerce, who were most familiar with all that Dr. Jackson knew 
or thought upon this subject. 

** Dr. Morton had for some tim,e been engaged in searching for 
a safe agent for promoting insensibility during dental operations. 
He knew of, and had, upon one occasion, taken part in the ni- 
trous-oxide experiments of Dr. Wells. 

"As early as July, 18 16, he purchased sulphuric ether, and 
proceeded to experiment upon it. On September 80, 1846, he 
has an interview with Dr. Jackson, and receives his decided ad- 
vice to use pure, rectified sulphuric ether during a dental opera- 
tion, accompanied with the strongest assurance of its safety, and 
with the information where it could be obtained. Dr. Morton, 
unlike others vrho had received this advice, and notwithstanding 
he kneAv the pievailing belief of the dangerous and sometimes 
fatal character of this agent, forthwith acted upon it. That he 
proceeded to inhale it himself, rests, indeed, on his ow^n assertion. 
The committee have no doubt of its truth. He certainly admin- 
istered it to a patient. By so doing, he made this discovery. On 
learning this result Dr. Jackson very naturally suggested to Dr. 
Morton that he had better get the ether tried by the surgeons of 
the hospital, w^hich a witness of Dr. Morton's, however, alleges 
that he had previously determined to do. But all the subsequent 
steps w^ere taken by Dr. Morton himself, without the slightest 
sympathy or co-operation on the part of Dr. Jackson, who, from 
alleged fear of his recklessness, withheld from him all countenance 
and encouragement. In view of these facts, the committee are of 
opinion, that the exclusive claims advanced by Dr. Jackson, 
though now very extensively recognised in foreign countries, are 
unfounded, being unwarranted alike by his acts and by his omis- 
sions ; and that they involve great injustice towards Dr. Morton ; 
that their names will be forever jointly, though not equally, asso- 
ciated in this discovery ; Bi\ Jackson being entitled to the credit 
of having rendered readily available the existing knowledge up- 
on the subject of ether, which T)c, Morton was really, though not 



81 

avowedh'. seeking to cct?l:i ) r.iid T>:. Morton having Srst de- 
monstrated its safety and efncacy in the prevention of pain during 
surgical operations ; and that l3r. Morton, by consenting to per- 
mit Dr. Jackson's name to be united with his in the patent, with 
the right to receive one-tenth part of its profits, has shown him- 
self disposed, fairly and honorably, to recognise the amount of 
Iiis indebtedness to Dr. Jackson's advice." 

In the report of the committee of the House, in February, 
1849, where these questions are carefully examined, the conclu- 
sion is against the claim, of Dr. Jackson on both these points ; 
they say : 

" It is, however, contended by Dw Jackson, that in the admin- 
istration of ether to his patient on the 30th September, and in the 
subsequent exhibition of it in the hospital, Dr. Morton acted as 
•Ms agent merely ; that he was, in fact, the experimenter as well 
as the discoverer, and the merit of success or the responsibility of 
failure rested on him. This position your committee w^iil now 
proceed to examine. 

" This claim is not supported by the evidence wJiich has been 
thus far considered ; indeed, it bears strongly against it, and your 
committee can find no contemporary matter touching this point, 
except a statement of George O. Barnes, not yet commented up- 
on. The w^itness, after stating Dr. Jackson's efforts to overcome 
the scruples of Morton, says: 'Indeed, Dr. Jackson urged the 
matter very earnestly and w^ith perfect confidence, taking on him- 
self the whole responsibility.' Now, if this be a deduction, an 
inference from the conversation stated, it is of no value whatever, 
except to show a certain earnestness in the witness. If it be but 
a further declaration, it is unsupported by the testimony of Mc- 
Intire : and, in a third important particular, differs from and goes 
beyond him. But the well attested conduct of the parties them- 
selves, at the time of the transaction in which this agency is 
claimed to have been conferred and accepted, what is termed by 
lawyers the res gestce, shows more clearly than everything else 
the true relation which they then bore to each other, and each of 
them to the subject matter in controversy. 

"Dr. Jackson claims that he had long had in his mind a con- 
viction that the vapor of sulphuric ether could be inhaled without 
danger or injury to the patient, and that under its influence sur- 
gical operations could be perform-cd without pain. All admit 
him to be a man of science, fully aware of the mighty value of 
such a discovery, and not at all indifferent to his own reputation 
in the scientific world. In this state of things we cannot con- 
ceive it possible that he could have remained inactive for years, 
waiting till chance should send him some one to bring out his 
great discovery, instead of proceeding himself by direct experi- 
ment. It is not at all disputed that Dr. Morton went to Dr. 
Jackson's shop that day uninvited ; that his w^ants and not Dr. 
Jackson's wishes and purposes led to the conversation ; that there 
6 



was notiiing of an especially confidential nature between them ; 
that what Dr. Jackson sairl to him, he said in the usual manner 
of public conversation, and not like a man who was engaging 
another to bring out a most important discovery to the world. 

*• But take Dr. Morton to be just what Dr. Jackson and his 
two witnesses represent him to have been at the time of that 
conversation, v^as he the man whom Dr. .Jackson would have 
trusted to represent him in a matter so deeply involving his 
character and his fame ? Say it is Jackson's discovery, the expe- 
riment is his, Ae is responsible for. the consequences. II it suc- 
ceed, he has made the noblest contribution to surgical science 
w^hich the century has witnessed ; if it fail, the consequences 
might be most disastrous. Whom does he select to carry out 
this, the most important conception of his life or of the age? 
Let his two witnesses ansYv^er. 

" According to them, a man profoundly ignorant of the pow- 
erful msclicinal agent w^hich he was directed to employ — one who 
did not know v/hat kind of *- stuff" sulphuric ether was, and who 
wished to see it in order thus to test its qualities, is selected by 
one of the first scientific men of the age to conduct a delicate 
and dangerous experiment with this same sulphuric ether, on the 
success of which even more than reputation depended. If Dr. 
Jackson had dwelt upon the subject, conceived the discovery in 
his own mind, considered it with a view" of making it knovrn to 
the world and useful to mankind, he knew that much depended 
on the first public exhibition ; and he also knew that it required 
science, prudence, and skill, to render the experiment successful , 
and prevent its becoming disastrous. Sulphuric ether would pro- 
duce insensibility to pain ; too little of it would make the expe- 
riment ineffectual, and bring the operator and his nostrum into 
ridicule ; too iiviich, or the proper quantity unskilfuUy adminis- 
tered, would produce asphyxia, probably death. Under these 
circumstances, how can your committee believe that Dr. Jackson 
would have trusted such a man as his witnesses represent Dr. 
Morton to be, with his first experiment upon his great discovery? 
Would it not have been inexcusable in him to have done so ? 
Would it not have shown a recklessness of his own fame and the 
lives of his fellov»'-men ? 

'^ Such a conclusion, your committee are satisfied, cannot be 
imputed to him with justice. Had Dr. Jackson made the discov- 
ery and felt that it was his, could he have failed to be at once 
aware of its vast importance, and the worldwide reputation it 
would give him, would he have trusted it for a moment m the 
hands of a man less skillful and scientific than himself? indeed, 
would he have entrusted it with any one ? but would he not have 
himself seen that it was administered in a proper manner, and 
under proper conditions to make it safe and effectual ? Would 
he not have stood by and watched the sinking pulse of his first 
subject, until insensibility was complete, and have been careful to 



•withdraw it when he saw it was likely to endanger life, and thus 
done all that science and skill could do to avoid a failure or a 
catastrophe ? But there was nothing of this. Having given the 
information which he did give in the conversation with Dr. Mor- See 

ton, he turned neither to the right nor left, nor troubled himself ^^^^'^^^^^'^ 
further on the subject, until he was advised bj Dr. Morton that gouiJ, and 
the experiment had been successful. He expresses no surprise, surgeons of 
no emotion; it is an incident of the day — an occurrence. ^^"C"?f ^^spi- 
cording to the testimony of Barnes, he advises Dr. Morton to try 
it in some capital operation in .the hospital ; does not say he will 
try it himself, which he might or ought to have done, if Morton 
had been his agent. He does not propose to get permission for 
Dr. Morton so to try it, though he well knew the application by 
himself, or in his name, would insure the permission. He advises 
Dr. Morton to get permission, and try it in the hospital, and does 
not propose to be present, and in fact is not present when the trial 
is made, though the hospital was but five minutes' walk from his 
door. That operation was successfully performed, and another was 
noticed to take place the next day, about which Dr. .Jackson gave 
himself no concern, and at which he was not present. The com- 
mittee feel that his conduct during this time was wholly incon- 
sistent with the fact that he recognized the discovery as his own, 
and that these were his experiments. 

"It is urged as a reason for his absence at the first operation 
in the hospital, that Dr. Morton did not inform him at what time 
it was to take place. As to this, there is no proof that he did 
or did not inform him ; but surely, had Dr. Jackson felt the soli- 
citude which the discoverer would naturally feel, he would have 
informed himself, and his daily associations naturally led him, to 
the knowledge. On the other hand, after the successful operation 
of the 30ih of September, and after Dr. Morton had seen his pa- 
tient and ascertained that be had suffered no injury from the 
ether — elated with his success, he consulted Dr. Hay den as to 
the mode of bringing out the discovery, and suggested at once 
that he would introduce it into the hospital. A few days afters- 
wards, he told Dr. Hayden that Dr. Jackson would not counte- 
nance the discovery, and again said he vv^ould go to Dr. Warren 
and endeavor to have it introduced into the hospital. The fact 
that Dr. Jackson refused to give Dr. Morton a certificate that 
ether was harmless in its effects, or might be used with safety, is 
admitted by Dr. Jackson in his defence by the Messrs. Lord ; but 
they say it proves nothing but Dr. Jackson's '^ unwillingness to 
figure in Dr. Morton's advertisements, a7id his prudence in re- 
fusing to make himself responsible jor anything and everything 
Morton, in his ignorance, might do ivit/i an agent liable io the 
most dangerous abuse. ^ 

"This, if it stood alone, might be satisfactory; but one of the 
witnesses, Geo. O. Barnes, says that, on the 30th of September,. 



?.S3'jr3:'. L::n it V\'Gi;ld '^ 'uct do t.'ic l east injury.^ He urgetithe 
matter very earnestly, expressly taking on himself all the respon- 
sibility ;' and it was on the firet of October, the morning after the 
sncce'^^Hfl experiment, th?^ Dr Jackson refused to ofive a cerHii- 
cate 'that ether was har.iiless in its eitects,^ and yet, on tlie same 
day, the witness Barnes says, on being advised by Dr. Morton of 
tM success of the operation, Dr. Jackson said to him : ' You must 
go to Dr. ¥/arren and get his permission to administer it in the 
Massachusetts General Hospital, and if possible, it should be on a 
capital operation.' And he a^oes on to say that Morton strongly 
objected at first going to the hospital : that everybody would 
smell the ether, and it would not be kept secret : but that, after 
learning something to disguise the odor, he agreed to apply to 
the hospital. 

"We have already adverted to the fact that Br. Morton, the 
very evening after the successful operation, suggested to Dr. Hay- 
den that he would go to the hospital and get permission to try the 
ether there ; that he vvent next morning to Dr. Jackson, and re- 
turned, saying Dr. Jackson would not give his countenance to the 
discovery ; and it is admitted that Dr. Jackson refused him the 
certificate he wished for, and one of the reasons given is that he 
did not think him fit to be trusted. Is it, then, probable that he 
urged him to go to the hospital and there bring out his (Dr. Jack- 
son's) great discovery? But James Mclntiiewas also present on 
the 1st of October, when Dr. Morton returned and advised Dr. 
Jackson of the entire success of the experiment, and he says not a 
•word of Dr. Jackson's proposing to Dr. Morton to try an experi- 
ment in the hospital. Your committee has already remarked in 
several other points of difference in the testimony of these two wit- 
nesses, and in each case, as in this, they felt themselves constrained 
hy the testimony of other witnesses and by the inherent character 
of the evidence to rely on the accuracy of Mclntyre rather than 
of Mr. Barnes, w^here these discrepancies occur.* 

•• Another difficulty in sustaining the position assumed by Dr. 
Jackson forcibly impresses itself upon your com|iiittee. Accord- 
ing to this, on the 30th of September, Dr. Jackson entrusted Dr. 
Morton with his discov-ery, and not only suffered him, but ^ earn- 
estly urged ' him to use it, assuring him it was perfectly safe ; Dr. 
Morl'on tried it on the same evening ; his success. was complete ; 
he brought io Dr. Jackson the next morning conclusive evidence 
cf all this, and Dr. Jackson refused him a certificate because he 
would not ' make himself responsible for anything and everything 
Morton in his ignorance might do with an agent liable to the most 
dangerous abuse,' w^hile nothing is shown to shake Dr. Jaekson's 
confidence in Dr. Morton since the previous day, or at all to 
change his opinion of him, except the triumphant success of the 

* See J. D. Whitney, United States Geologist, p. 395 : that this Barnes had 
^' testified to anything Dr. Jackson wanted him to." 



85 

operation which he reported and proved. On the 16th of Octoberj 
the first operation was performed in the hospital, at which, as we 
have already shown, Dr. Jackson did not attend, and at which his 
name was not known. The second operatiort at the hospital took 
place on the 17th, Dr. Jackson talking no part in it by his presence 
or his counsel. Both operations were entirely successful, and both 
conducted on the part of Dr. Morton to the etitire ssatisfaction of 
the surgeons of the hospital. Eut at this time Dr. Jackson's con- 
fidence in Dr. Morton, if he ever did confide in him, is wholly 
gone. He denies, in the conversation with his neighbor and friend, 
Caleb Eddy, that under the influence of ether the flesh of a patient 
can be cut without pain ; says Morton '' is a reckless man for using 
it as he has ; the chaTiCeis he will kill somebody yet ;' and in the 
interval Uitween the 30tb of September and about the 23d of Oc- 
tober, he declared he that did not care what Morton did with it, 
or how much ^Morton advertised, if his own name was not drawn 
in with it. 

'• It would seem that as Dr. Morton acquired eclat by his con- 
stant success, as he continually and rapidly rose in the estimation of 
other scientific men, he as continually and as rapidly sunk in the ^^- GouM^ 
estimation of Dr. Jackson. The evidence of Francis Vf hitman, ch&ndlQv^^ 
Mr. Caleb Eddy, and Hon. Edward Warren, show that, priorp. 26S, ^ 
and up to the 23d October, Dr. Jackson ^spoke doubtingly of the 
effect of ether, and condemned its use ; and there is no proof what- 
ever that, within that time, he lent the slightest countenance to 
Dr. Morton to sustain the discovery, and all his remarks, exc^ept 
those stated by Mr. Hitchcock to have been made to him on the 
2d and 3d of October, tend to create distrust and destroy confidence 
both ir^ the operator and the agent used. His favorable mention 
of it to Bv, Keep occurred after the 26th of October, the actual 
date not fixed, and was accompanied with a strong general charge 
of ignorance and recklessness against Morton, who v/as then in the 
full tide of successful experiment. This state of facts is, in the 
opinion of your committee, wholly inconsistent with the assmnption 
that Dr. Jackson was the discoverer ; that he employed Dr. Mor- 
ton to bring out the discovery ; and that the experii::ents of Morton 
were tried on the responsibility of Dr. Jackson." 

The error into which Dr. Jackson has fallen, as to the extent of 
the concessions which have ]>een made him by all who have ex- 
amined the evidence, is somewhat remarkable, in view of the 
reasonings and conclusions of these tv/o very able reports upon 
the distinct points which he claims to have been universally con- 
ceded. While neither of them finds it necessary to approach or 
touch, what he avers to be '• the only points oonteste-d by " his 
*' m^ponents," namely : to use his own words, " That I had not a 
sufficient reasoa for draiving the inference that I did, as they ad- 
mits drawn from my dataJ^ " And again, that by inducing an 
ignorant dentist, a man of no medical knowledge, to pei'form the 



86 

mere mechanical operations made by my advice, and upon my 
medical responsibility, expressly assumed before witnesses, that 
I made him a co-partner, or joint discoverer, and that he made the 
first application of my discovery." 

Your committee hav^ looked in vain through all the papers be- 
fore them, and find no such admission; nor do they find the 
controversy anywhere to turn upon what Dr. Jackson, in this 
See Drs. P^^P^^^ avers to be the ^^ only points contested J'^ On the contrary, 
H. J. Bige- they find it denied, and to have been all along denied, that Dr. 
lows, S.Jackson drev*r the alleged inference, or in any other manner made 
^^^^^^^^the discovery ; or that he employed or engaged Dr. Morton to 
Gould. ' ' administer the ether vapor, on his (Dr. Jackson's) responsibility. 
These are the questions which your committtse find to be the ques- 
tions in issue, and which have been, from the first claim made by 
Dr. Jackson, m issue. This erroneous statement somewhat weak- 
ens the credit of the paper for accuracy, but it is to be regretted 
only in so far as it may tend to mislead the distinguished apostle 
of science in a foreign land, to whom it was directed. 

Dr. Jackson's first claim to the discovery which appears on 
paper, is in a letter addressed to M. Eiie de Beaumont, dated 
Boston, 13th November, 1846, which was opened and read to 
the Academy of Arts and Sciences at Paris, at their meeting, 
18th January, 1847. It is ti^s introduced : 

"M. Elie de Beaumont requested the opening of a sealed 
packet which had been deposited at the meeting of 23th of De- 
cember, 1846, and which contained two letters from Mr. Jackson, 
of which the following are extracts : first letter — 

" ^Boston, Voth MovemhcTy 1846. 

*''I request permission to communicate through your medium, 
to the Academy of Sciences, a discovery which I have made, and 
w^hieh I believe important for the relief of suffering humanity, as 
well as of great value to the surgical profession. Five or six 
years ago I noticed the peculiar state of insensibility into which 
the nervous system is thrown by the inhalation of the vapor of 
pure sulphuric ether, which I respired abundantly : first by way 
of experiment, and atterwards when I had a severe catarrh, 
caused by the inhalation of chlorine gas. I have latterly made 
a useful application of this fact, by persuading a dentist of this 
city to administer the vapor of ether to his patients, when about 
to undergo the operation of extraction of teeth. It was observ- 
ed that persons suffered no pain in the operation, and that no in- 
convenience resulted from the administration of the vapor.' " 

In a second letter of December 1st, 1846, Dr. Jackson author- 
izes the opening of the above letter. The following is an extract 
from it, and the explanatory remarks of M. Velpeau : second 
letter — 



87 ' 

"1st Beceraher, 1846. 
•' The advantage of the appreciation of the vapor of ether has 
been completely established in this country, and the agent has 
been used with great success at the Massachusetts General Hos- 
pital." 

On this point Mr. Yelpeau made the following remarks : 
"The secret contained in the note which has been read is no 
longer a secret ; the medical journals published in America and 
England have divulged it in the months of November and De- 
cember. A letter from Dr. Warren, of Boston, communicated 
the information to me more than one month ago ; and Dr. Willis 
Fisher, of the same city, proposed that I should try its effects 
at La Charite towards the middle of last December." 

The present object of quoting these letters is to show the ac- 
count which Dr. Jackson then gave of his experiment in 1841-'42. 
It, in truth, goes no further than prior experiments had made fa- 
miliar to the medical faculty. The Edinburg Medical Journal of 
April 1st, 1847, speaking of it, says : 

'^ In the administration of ether vapor there is, therefore, noth- 
ing new. Its narcotic and anodyne effects have been long well 
known to experienced and well-informed observers. The applica- 
tion of ether vapor, nevertheless, as an anodyne previous to 
surgical operations, suggested a mode of exhibition which, besides 
being new, has the merit of being more efficient than the uiethods 
in ordinary cases." 

Dr. Jackson's trial in 1841-'42, as stated by him in the above 
letter, w^as a mere application of its well-known narcotic and ano- 
dyne properties. In a paper pubHshed by Dr. Jackson in the 
Boston Daily Advertiser of March 1st, 1847, he adds to the state- 
ment in his letter to M. Elie de Beaumont but one distinct fact — 
relief from the pain of his catarrh during the effect of the inha- 
lation of the vapor of sulphuric ether, and its return presently 
afterwards. The same fact is stated as having occurred in Dr. 
Thornton's practice, first published in 1795-'96. 

In a letter written by Dr. Jackson to Dr. Martin Gay, dated 
'May 1, 1847, he professes to give an account of his "experi- 
ments and observations made several years ago on the inhalation 
of the vapor of pure sulphuric ether." He states his experiments 
as follows : The first : 

" I moistened a cloth and laid it over my mouth and nostrils, 
and laid myself back in a rocking chair, and inhaled the vapor, 
noticing its effects on the system. The first impression was that 
of coolness, then a sensation of warmth and exhilaration, with a 



88 

singular feeling of excitement in the chest. This was followed 
by a loss of consciousness, from which I in a short time awoke ; 
soon afterwards I entirely recovered from the effects of the 
ether." 

The second : 

*' Afterwards, still suffering from the effects of the chlorine, I 
thought I would try the ether vapor again, and for a longer time. 
I went, therefore, into my office, which is connected with my 
house, and taking the bottle of pure sulphuric ether from the lab- 
oratory, I soaked a folded cloth in it, squeezed it out slightly, 
and seating myself in a rocking chair, with my feet resting upon 
another chair, I commenced inhaling the ether from the cloth, 
which was placed over my mouth and nostrils, while my head 
was laid back against my chair, so that I was quite at ease in a 
fixed position. The effects of the inhalation were as before des- 
cribed, excepting that it made me cough at first. I was, there- 
fore, led to believe that the paralysis of the nerves of sensation 
would be so great, during the continuance of the insensibility, 
that a surgical operation might be performed upon a patient under 
its influence, without giving him any pain ; for the loss of con- 
sciousness was remarkable, perhaps resem^bling that of epilepsy 
more than any other kind of insensibility." 

On the 18th of May, 1848, something more than a year after- 
wards, the contest about the discovery all the time going sharply 
on, and new facts daily developing themselves in the use and 
effects of sulphuric ether. Dr. Jackson addressed a letter to Jo- 
seph Hale Abbott, Esq., giving, as he says, '-'a more minute state- 
ment, than I have heretofore published, of the effects produced 
upon me by sulphuric ether, when I inhaled it for rehef from the 
distress occasioned by the inhalation of chlorine in the winter 
of 1841-'2. And, also, a statement of the precise ground, 
Avhich I have never published, of the idea then conceived by me 
that pure sulphuric ether could be used with safety and success 
to prevent pain in surgical operations. 

"I will add that in my published letter to Dr. Gay, I neglected, 
through inadvertence, to state one of my principal reasons ; which, 
as will be seen by this pamphlet, I had mentioned to him, in con- 
versation, for the inference I drew from my observations. The 
experiment referred to above, in the course of which I observed 
that sulphuric ether produced insensibility to pain, was as fol- 
lows : Having taken a bottle of pure sulphuric ether from my 
laboratory, I went into my office, soaked a folded cloth with it, 
squeezed it out slightly, and seated myself in a rocking chair. 
Having laid my head back against the rocking chair, with my feet 
supported by another, so as to give me a fixed position, I placed 



89 

the cloth over my mouth and nostrils and commenced inhajing 
the ether. The effects perceived by me were at first a little 
coughing, a sensation of coldness, then warmth and fullness of 
the head and chest, exhilaration and giddiness, nuinbress ar^d 
want of feelmg in the feet and legs, a swimming sensation, as if I 
had been afloat in the air, together with a loss of all feeling of 
the rocking chair in which I was seated — loss of all sensation of 
pain in the throat and chest — a state of reverie, and soon entire 
unconsciousness, for a space of time unknown to me. Recovering^, 
I felt a sense of giddiness, but with no desire to move — found the 
cloth I had moistened with ethel' had dropped from my mouth — 
had no feeling of pain in the throat and chest, but began to feel 
a strange thrilling in the body. In a short time, I felt the sore- 
ness in the throat gradually returning, and the distress in the chest 
also, though much less than it had been before. From the ces- 
sation of all pain, and the loss of all feeling of external objects, 
a little while before and after the loss of entire consciousness, I 
was led to infer that the paralysis of the nerves of sensation 
would be so great during the continuance of the unconsciousness 
and the total loss of feeling, that a surgical operation could be 
performed upon a patient, under the influence of ether, without 
giving him any pain ; and, therefore, I prescribed it with entire 
confidence in the result." 

Next follows, on the 18th of December, ISol, the narrative to 
Earon Von Humboldt, above set forth, but to which your com- 
mittee think proper to refer again, specially, in this connexion. 
After stating the accidental inhalation of chlorine gas, and the 
means used to destroy its effects, he says : *' The next morning 
my throat was severely inflamed, and very painful, and I per- 
ceived a distinct flavor of chlorine in my breath, and my lungs 
were still much oppressed. I determined, therefore, to make a 
thorough trial of the ether vapor, and for that purpo$;e went into 
my laboratory, which adjoins my house in Somerset street, and 
made the experiment from which the discovery of anJKsthesia was 
induced. I had a large supply of perfectly. pure washed sulphuric 
ether, which was prepared in the laboratory of my friend, Mr. 
John H. Blake, of Eoston. I took a bottle of that ether and a 
folded towel, and seating myself in a rocking chair, and placing 
my feet in another chair, so as to secure a fixed position as I re- 
clined backward in the one in which I w^as seated. Soaking the 
towel in the ether, I placed it over my nose and mouth, so as to 
inhale the ether mixed with the air, and began to inhale the vapor 
deeply into my lungs. At first the ether made me cough, but 
soon that irritability ceased, and I noticed a sense of coolness, 
followed by warmth, fullness of the head and chest, with giddi- 
ness and exhilaration; numbness of the feet and legs followed; a 
swimming or floating sensation, as if afloat in the air. This was 
accompanied with entire loss of fcdiiig, even of contact with the 



90 

chaix^ in which I was seated. I noticed that all pain had ceased 
in my throat, and the sensations which I had were of the most 
agreeable kind. Much pleased and excited I continued the inha- 
lation of the ether vapor, and soon fell into a dreamy state, and 
then became unconscious of all surrounding things. I know not 
how long I remained in that state, but suppose that it could not 
be less than a quarter of an hour, judging from the degree of dry- 
ness of the cloth, which, during this state of unconsciousness, had 
fallen from my mouth and nose, and lay upon my breast. As I 
became conscious I observed still there was no feeling of pain in 
my throat, and my limbs were still deeply benumbed, as if the 
nerves of sensatioii were fully paralyzed. A strange thrilling 
now began to be felt along the spine, but it was not in any way 
disagreeable. Little by little sensation began to manifest itself, 
lirst in the throat and body, and gradually extended to the ex- 
tremities, but it was some time before full sensation returned, and 
my throat became really painful. 

^* Reflecting upon these phenomena, the idea flashed into my 
mind that / had made the discovery I had so long a time been in 
quest of; a means of rendering the nerves of sensation temporarily 
insensible to pain, so as to admit of the performance of surgical 
operation on an individual without his suffering pain therefrom." 

These statements would have been entitled to much more 
v/eight, in the estimation of your committee, if all the facts al- 
leged to have been observed, and conclusions drawn, in 1841-'2, 
as stated in the letter to Baron Von Humboldt, of December 18, 
1851, had appeared in the letter to Elie de Beaumont of Novem- 
ber 13, 1846, or even in that to Dr. Gay, of May 1, 1847 ; but 
such is by no means the case. Each successive letter states the 
case more strongly than the last preceding, and the facts super- 
added in the later letters are those vv^hich alone give novelty and 
importance to the experiment. 

In closing his statement of the last and final experiment in 
1841-*2, in the part of the letter of December 18, 1851, to Baron 
Von Humboldt, las«t above set forth. Dr. Jackson says, " reflect- 
ing upon these phenomena, the idea flashed into my mind that I 
had made the discovery I had for so long a time been in quest of ; 
a means, &c." And he goes on to give, formally and in detail, 
the scientific deductions which he says were made at the time, and 
which then led him to the conclusion. If that statement be true, 
the discovery at that time, so far as private experiment and philo- 
sophical deduction could go, was as full and complete as it was on 
the morning of October 1, 1846, after Dr. Morton's successful 
operation on Eben Frost. 

Now, if Dr. Jackson, in the winter of 1841-'2, did, in fact, 
make such discovery, and in earnestness, and in faith, and enthu- 
siasm, was possessed with it, and with an animating desire to give 
it, and to give his name with it, to mankind, how happens it that 



91 

no contemporary written paper or pen-mark, under the hand of 
Dr. Jackson, or some one of his numerous friends or pupils, re- 
mains to attest the discovery? No private memorandum of his ^^Isnot 
own, detailing his experiments and his scientific deductions from tliis a good 

them; notliino;, in case of sudden death, to connect his name with ^^^^i.^^^?^® 

,. * 1 1 T •jir'..- Tin Lrerman m- 

the discovery, and secure the discovery itseli to tiie world : vention of 

The paper above referred to, of November 13, 1846, wiitten gun-cotton, 
after the discovery had been in fact made — after the first capital ^^ *^ ^ 
operation had been successfully performed under the superinten- don't know 
dence af Dr, Morton, and after Dr. Jackson had nearly made up which dis- 
his mind to claim the discoviery as Ms own, w^as enclosed to M. ^^^^^I^I-^' 
Elie de Beaurnont, with directions to iiie it in the Academy of j^ogt ex- 
Arts and Sciences of Paris, but not to break the seal until thereto citement. 
directed. This paper, its seal and its custody, sJiow^ that Dr. Jack- It is curious 
5on knew how to save a secret and yet preserve the evidence of a g^ould ^^ 
disco vej-y ; and it shows that he v/as not negligent or tardy, but have been 
hastened to take a formal contingent possession of this discovery overlooked 
in Europe before he witnessed, even as a spectator, a eingfe opera- ^^etter^ of 
tion under the influence of the new anoBsthetic agent. It seems Dr. JacJc- 
that he had not yet fully made up his mnnd to claim the ^^^ son to J. B. 
covery. He wanted further verification of the safety and efficacy {343^'^*'^' 
of the ana^s^ietic agent before he^ took the decisive step df an- 
nouncing it as his own. He therefore tlirected the letter making 
the claim to the discovery to be deposited, seaied^ in the Academy 
of Arts and Sciences at Paris, not be opened until he should 
direct. 

The success of the pain-subduing agent from that day till the 
first of December, 1846, removed all doubt. The discovery was 
established. It already stood first in rank in the discoveries of 
the century, and fame, and honor, and rewards awaited the dis- 
coverer. Dr. Jackson, on that day and under these circumstances, 
wrote the letter last above copied, to M. Elie de Beaumont, di- > 
lecting him to open the sealed packet, and publish him, Dr. Jack- 
son, to Europe, as the discoverer. 

Considering the man and the discovery ; the inestimable value 
of the discovery; the knowledge of the man, and his capacity to 
appreciate its value ; his full application of it when satisfied that 
the discovery v/as in fact made, and his eager promptitude in then 
L^eizing and appropriating to himself at least all that was his ; your 
committee cannot believe it possible that he should have been for 
a long time in earnest pursuit of the discovery, that he should 
have made it and perfected it in 1841-'2 by experiment and deduc- 
tion, that he should, for nearly five years have been in possession 
of it and with his full estimate of its value, and yet that he should 
not in its inception or progress record it, somewhere, at somg time, 
on something more fixed and reliable than mere frail, uncertain, 
and mutable memory. 



92 

He knew well, if he thought on tlie subject at all, that but a. 
thin veil separated the familiar and daily waiks of the faculty 
from the spot where lay his hidden treasure. Did he nofri* ^ that 
some one would lift the veil? He knew it was but asiLp, and 
that a short one, from what was well known to the discovery 
itself. Did he not fear that some one would take that step and 
sei^e the prize which he could then so easily secure to himself 
forever ? If he made the discovery in 1841-'25 and was not yet 
prepared to disclose it, there was reason then for placing in the 
archives of some European and some American academy a sealed 
paper, giving an account of the /acts observed, and the deductions 
drawn at the time, that this much at least might be beyond the 
reach oi rivalry and chance. But was there any just reason for 
this when he committed the sealed lett^- above referred to to Mo 
Elie de Beaumont ? The discovery was public and in public use 
in Boston for moi^ than a month before that letter was vrritten 
and seakd. The packet ship that carried that letter bore also 
the news of the discovery to Europe. What secret did this paper 
contain, that it must be kept under seal until the next arrival 
from America ? Nothing, surely, which was public in Boston 
when the packet sailed ; public also, of course, on board of the 
ship^ and Vvhich must be public over all Europe within twenty- 
four hours after she should touch the Liverpool docks. 

The sealed letter contained but one single secret not known 
over the European and American vrorld, before it reached the 
hands of M. Elie de Beaumont, namely : that Dr. Charles T. 
Jackson claimed the discovery as his. And vv^hy did he not then 
avow it, and proclaim it, instead of requiring his claim to remain 
under ihe seal of ^secrecy till the next arrival ? His letter of 1st 
December gives tlie reason. It advises M. E^ie de Beaumont that 
the success of the Bewly discovered anaesthetic agent is complete, 
and directs him to open, therefore, the sealed packet, and disclose 
its contents to the Academy. He did so ; and Dr. Jackson was 
forthwith in possession of the discovery in Europe. 

Until the fi';st capital operation under the influence of the vapor 
of ether, which took place on the 7th of November, 1846, Dr. 
Jackson had evidently no fixed confidence in its success as an 
anaesthetic agent. Nor did this sieem. to satisfy him fully. Six 
day€ after this he sent his sealed statement to be deposited in the 
Academy at Paris, and not until many more successful operations 
had been performed under the superintendence of Dr. Morton, and 
until the last doubt of the incredulous was removed, did he direct 
publication to be made of his claim to the discovery. It is not to 
be credited that he had already possessed this discovery for five 
years, and knew its value and felt the etithusiam of the discoverer; 
that he held it and believed in it and rejoiced in it for five years, 
and yet, that no word or line was ever written by him or any one 
of his numerous confidential friends to him, or for him, until the 



iette: 01 x^ovember i^^tn, lb4G, liintmg' even darkly at his pos- 
session 01 the migiity prize. And tiie dilnoaity is greatly increased 
when these striking facts are considered in connexion with this 
letter, embodying the first written statement of Dr. Jackson's al- 
legred discovery. The accounts there given of his alleged ^^P^^i- g^S™^^' 
ment« in l841-'42, show no new discovery, but a mere repetition Warren, ' 
of a well known prescription for its usual purpose, attended with Hayward, 
effects also before that time well known. And the medical jour- "^^J^r ^°M 
nals from the other side of the Atlantic, which returned with a 
revievv' of the discovery, show this fact, and comprise all the merits 
of the discovery in the successfji application of the vapor of sul- 
phuric ether as an anaesthetic agent in an actual surgical opera- 
tion. These journals-, with this criticism and judgment, had been 
in the hands of the American public more than a month before 
Dr. Jackson published his amended and extended statement of 
March 1st, 1847, and mere than three years before his letter of 
18th December, 1S51. to Baron Yon Humboldt, the statement in 
which, if it be believed, supplies all deiicieneies except the want 
of a public experiment, or one at least made in the presence of 
witnesses. Eut it is strange^ if that statement be true, that Dr» 
Jackson, from 1841-'42, to September 30, 1846, never applied 
that crowning test ; that after he professed tc have perfected the 
discovery by philosophical experiment and induction, he suffered 
it to sleep for five years, during which time he never made another 
experiment of any kind on himself or on another person, or even 
on a domestic animal ; that, from fir«t to last, he never m'tde an 
experiment of any kind in presence of witnesses. Indeed, for sev- 
eral years prior to 30th September, 1846, the use of sulphuric 
ether appears to have ceased in his laboratory, for in his letter to 
Baron Yon Humboldt, giving his version of the interview with 
Dr. Morton on that dayj he sb.js : 

^^He (Morton) asked me to let him take the bottle of sulphuric 
ether v\'hich I had just shown him ; but since it had been standing 
in the laboratory for some years, I feared it mi^ht have become 
deteriorated, I therefore advised him to go to Mr. Burnett, one 
of our best apothecaries, and get some pure sulphuric ether." 

Dr. Jackson evidently feels that the long delay, from 1841-'42 
lo 1846, hi bringing out his alleged discovery, and the sudden 
and abrupt manner in which he professes to have placed it in the 
hands of a man whom he stigmatizes as an ^Hgnoramiis^^ and a 
" quack,'' require explanation ; and in his letter to Baron Yon 
Humboldt, he gives the following : 

"Tt is obvious enough to those who know the ciicumstances, 
why I engaged an ignorant man to introduce my discovery. I had 
already, before Mr. Morton came to Boston and set up as a den- 



94 

tist, endeavored to engage more T^sponsible persons to make trial 
of the ether in their practice, but they declined doing so, kno\ying 
that the medical and toxicological books declared it to he a dan- 
gerous experiment, while I insisted that it was not dangerous. 
They thought that in their medical capacity they would incur 
responsibihty for any accidents that might happen to the patients, 
and hence feared to act."* 

If Dr. Jackson made, in truth, this great discovery in the 
winter of 1841-'2, and was conscious of its truth and its value, 
the above statement, in the opinion of your committee, falls far 
short of a suflicient explanation of the fact that he so long de- 
layed announcing it to the world. According to him^ the dis- 
covery v/as complele as soon as he av/oke from the state of un- 
consciousness into vvhich he had been brought by inhaling the 
ether vapor. All v^^as complete, except to bring it out by an 
actual experiment in the presence of the surgical faculty ; as com- 
plete, so far as he was concerned, as it w^as on the morning of the 
30th of September, 1846. Now, can it be believed, that during 
more than four years that intervened betv/een the time of the 
alleged discover}^ and the public experiments of Dr. Morton, no 
available means offered themselves to Dr. Jackson to test it, and 
disclose it, and prove it to the world ? He says, " and it is w^ell 
known that the vapor of sulphuric ether was sometimes inhaled 
by the young men at college." Could he not, after this discovery, 
have been present, and after leading the way himself, have in- 
duced some of them to inhale it until it produced ir^sensibiJity ? 
Could he not have himself inhaled it before his friends and asso- 
ciates of the hospital, and satisfied them of its safety by his 
speedy recovery, of its complete suspension of all sensibility to 
pain by usual tests with which he was familiar, or even something 
more decisive, as the actual cautery applied for an instant to some 
sensitive part ? Conviction would have follovf ed a simple and 
safe exhibition like this, and his associates, members of the faculty 
of the hospital, v/ould not have hesitated to further test the dis- 
covery by surgical operations. Indeed, we cannot suppose that 
they would have hesitated to do so at once on his mere statement 
of the expeximent upon himself, as given to Baron Von Humboldt, 
and his assurance that it produced anaesthesia, and was attended 
with no injurious effects. They did not hesitate to grant it to 
the representatians of Dr. Morton- — a young man almost a stranger 
to the faculty. Dr. Jackson, it seems, too, believed they would 
grant it thus readily, for he says he directed and urged Dr. Mor- 
ton to go and ask it, to which he says Dr. M. reluctantly con- 
sented ; and Dr. Jackson gave him no written paper, and spoke no 
kind word m his behalf to any of the faculty. With the extra- 
ordinary facilities for bringing out such discovery, which Dr. Jack- 

* "Having no patients, and being engaged in other business, I had to employ 
others, viz : Morton and the hospital surgeons." — Letter to J. D. Whit»ey, 1847. 



95 

son had at his very door ; with his own high scientific position, 
which enabled him fully to command them, your committee can- 
not believe that he made the discovery, and was compelled by a 
kind of necessity so long to witlilioid it from the world. Dr. 
Jackson shows no such necessity. Nor can your committee be- 
heve that he had the secret, and held it for any reason or from 
any motive, a buried talent for nearly five years ; that he wit- 
nessed from time to time, during all that long period, the agony 
of the human frame- under the tortures of the cautery, the scalpel, 
and the knife, and remained silent, while he had, and knew he 
had, sovereign power over pain, and could banish it instantly with 
a breath. 

But Dr. Jackson, in his own conduct and bearing in reference 
to this discovery, and its verification and presentation before the 
public, from the oOth of September, 1846, down to the tim.e that 
it was fully established, proves that he was not, and did not be- 
lieve himself to be the discoverer. Giving Dr. Jackson the lull 
benefit of the favorable opinion v/hich he entertained of Dr. Mor- 
ton, before- he had determined to become his competitor for the 
honor of the discovery, which appears by his certificate, namely, 
that he was a youEg man of marked energy and intelligence, and 
very creditable acquirements, in such branches of science as per- 
tained to his profession, still it is not within the range of proba- 
bility that Dr. Jackson, had he possessed the discovery, would 
have intrusted him or any one else to test its merits in the manner 
and under the circumstances in which he professed to have in- 
trusted it. 

He unquestionably believed Dr. Morton ignorant of sulphuric 
ether, its properties and its use, and supposed he had never thought 
of its application in the manner proposed. Surely he v^ould not 
select a man, ignorant of the anassthetic agent itself, to perform 
the delicate operation of first testing its efficacy and safety. He 
knew how much depended on its first exhibition, and he also 
knew that it required science and skill to render the experiment 
successful, and to avoid danger and disaster. Sulphuric ether 
would produce insensibility to pain, too little of it would make 
the experiment ineffectual and expose the operator to ridicule, 
too much, or the proper quantity unskilfully administered, would 
produce asphyxia, perhaps death. Under these circumstances Dr. 
Jackson could not have trusted a young man, without medical 
knowledge, and wuthout the knov/ledge of sulphuric ether, or its 
effects, to conduct his first great experiment, and he himself think 
it not worth his while to be present. But, according to his own 
statement, he gave to Dr. Morton no sufficient instruction corres- 
pondent with the mighty mission on which he was sent. He gave 
all the instruction which he saw fit to give in ten or fifteen minutes, 
he walking, and his pupil, according to his last statement, caper- 
ing about the laboratory. He dispatched him, however, on his 



% 

mission of mercv. to banish pain from the hiiniai: race, and lie 
himself quietly took his seat again in his laboratory, and troubled 
himself no further about the result. 

Dr. Jackson, had he thought on the subject, kne%v well that 
the effects of ether vapor would be different on different persons, 
and even on the same person in different states of the system. 
Had he been about to bring out his own discovery, the crowning 
honor of his life, he would not only have attended in person to 
the skilful administration of the anaesthetic agent, but he would 
liave hcen especially careful in the selection of a subject. On 
the contrary, if this was his t-xperiment, he directed its trial on 
the w^orst subject conceivable, a nervous and refractory patient 
who refused to submit to an operation. That was what Dr. 
Morton professed to have on hand, and in reference to which Dr. 
Jackson saj^s he disclosed his discovery and gave directions for 
its application. The first operation was really performed on a 
fortunate subject, such a one as Dr. Jackson might well have 
selected ; but he knew nothing of this, or of anything other and 
iurther than the refractory patient. But Dr. Morton returned to 
Dr. Jackson's laboratory the next day, and reported the success of 
the experiment. Dr. Jackson, according to the testimony of 
Earnes, one of his witnesses, is quite unmoved, and expresses no 
surprise, but advises, and, as Dr. Jackson himself says, urged 
Dr. Morton to go to Dr. Warren and get his permission to try it 
in a capital case at the hospital. Now, if Dr. Jackson were 
really the discoverer, and had employed Dr. Morton to make the 
experiment for him, and as his agent, why did he send him, or 
advise or urge him to go to the hospital at all ? He refused him 
a written certificate that the anaesthetic agent which he used was 
harmless, because, as his former counsel, the Messrs. Lords, said 
for him, of an " unwillingness to figure in Morton's advertise- 
ments, and his prudence in refusing to make himself responsible 
for anything and everything Morton in his ignorance might do 
with an agent so liable to the most dangerous abuse.'' How 
came he, then, to trust Dr. Morton with this agent ? Why did 
he urge him to go with it to the hospital? He says in his letter 
to M. Elie de Beaumont that the experiments in the hospital 
were his. He had his anesthetic agent tested there in a capital 
experiment. He sent Dr. Morton to Dr. Warren to ask its ad- 
mission in the hospital ; and yet refused Dr. Morton a written 
certificate of the safety of the agent because he would not '-make 
hijnself responsible.'' And who was responsible ? We have no 
hesitation in saying that Dr. Jackson's claim to these experiments 
is unfounded, and his statements so far untrue, or he was guilty 
of bad faith towards Dr. Morton, and especially toward the 
faculty of the hospital. 

But the question recurs, why did he urge Dr. Morton to go to 
the hospital at all ? He does not pretend to have employed him 



97 

as his sole and only agent to bring out liis discovery. On the 
contrary, according to the statement of Barnes, his witness, Dr. 
Jackson, on the 1st of October, when applied to by Dr. Morton 
to keep the discovery secret, replied '^No ! I will have no secrets 
with my professional brethren." He was under no obligations to 
Dr. Morton. Why did he send him to the hospital ? He had 
trusted Dr. Morton in one case only ; if he did not think it worth 
his while to attend at the hospital himself and see in person to 
the administration of the anaesthetic agent in a capital case, he 
might have trusted it to some one of the learned surgeons of the 
hospital, to whom he could in a few minutes time have communi- 
cated all the information which he gave to Dr. Morton but the 
day before. He would then also have been free from all responsi- 
bility, which, though refused in writing, he says was assumed 
hefore witnesses, for w^hat, in the language of Dr. Jackson's 
counsel, " Morton in his ignorance and rashness might do with 
an agent so liable to the most dangerous abuse.^' This would 
have been consistent. If he engaged a dentist to use his discov- 
ery wheii he should extract a tooth, would he not have engaged 
a surgeon to use it when he should amputate a limb ? For what 
possible reason, if his statement be true, could he send the den- 
tist, who was profoundly ignorant of his anaesthetic agent, to 
administer it in a capital, surgical operation among learned and 
skilful men, and at the same time advise him how to disguise it 
so that they might not know what he was using ? He was de- 
termined to have no secrets with his professional brethren, and 
that he would tell them all that he had told Dr. Morton ; yet he 
put Dr. Morton in possession of a convenient means of disguising 
the agent, and keeping secret the actual discovery. This w^as 
consistent and right if it were Dr. Morton's discovery ; but a 
self-contradiction on the instant, almost in the same breath, if it 
were his own. It is clear to us, that at this time Dr. Jackson 
did not claim the discovery, but held himself in such position 
that he might at any moment assert an interest in, or repudiate 
and condemn it. Sometimes the experiments of Dr. Morton 
were successful, and Dr. Jackson spoke well of the discovery to 
a few special friends, as Mr. Hitchcock and Mr. Sumner. Some- 
times the experiments were unfortunate, as in the case of the cjjaifdler 
boy supposed to be poisoned, and Dr. Jackson doubted the sue- p. 258. 
cess of the discovery, and censured Dr. Morton, as in his con- 
Tersation with Caleb Eddy and Francis Whitman. 

" On the 16th of October," says the former committee, *^ the 
first operation was performed in the hospital, at which, as we _ See tes- 
have already shown. Dr. Jackson did not attend, and at which Jj^^^y ^^ 
•his name was not known. The second operation at the hospital geons. 
took place on^ the 17th, Dr. Jackson taking no part in it by his 
presence or his counsel. Both operations were entirely success- 



9S 

ful, and both conducted on the part of Dr. Mo?ton to the entire 
satisfaction of the surgeons of the hospital. Eut at thf? time 
Dr. Jackson's confidence in Dr. 3.Iorton, if he ever did confide irj- 
him, is wholly gone. He denies, in the conversation Tnth his 
neighbor and friend, Caleb Eddy, that under the influence of 
ether the flesh of a patient can be cut without pain ; says Mor- 
ton ^ is a reckless man for using it as he has ; the chance is he 
See Caleb -^j^jj ^v\[ somebody yet ;' and in the interval between the 30th of 
02qJ' September and about the 2od of October, he declared that he 
did not care what Morton did with it, or how much Morton 
advertised, if his own name was aot drawn in with it. 

'- It would seem that as Dr. Morton acquired eclat by his con- 
stant success, as he continually and rapidly rose in the estimatiori 
of other scientific men, he as continually and as rapidly sunk in. 
the estimation of Dr. Jackson. The evidence of Francis \Vhit- 
man and Mr. Caleb Eddy show that, prior and up to the 23d of 
October, Dr. Jackson spoke doubtingly of the eff'ect of ether- 
and condemned its use ; and there is no proof whateA^er that,, 
within that time, he lent the slightest countenance to Dr. Morton 
to sustain the discovery, and all his remarks, except those stated 
by Mr. Hitchcock to have been made to him on the 2d. and 3d of 
October, tend to create distrust and destroy confidence both in 
the operator and the ag^nt used. His favorable mention of it to 
Dr. Keep occurred after the 26th of October, (the actual date 
not fixed,) and was accompanied with a strong general charge of 
ignorance and recklessness against Morton, who was then in the- 
full tide of successful experiment. This state of facts is, in the 
opinion of your committee, wholly inconsistent with the assump- 
tion that Dr. Jackson was the discoverer ; that he had employed 
Dr. Morton to bring out the discovery, and that the experiments 
of Morton were tried on the responsibility of Dr. Jackson. 

'^On the 30th of September, the first successful operation took 
place. On the 1st of October, Dr. Morton applied to R. H. Eddy,. 
agent for the patents, to aid him in procuring a patent for the dis- 
SeeE. covery. Mr. Eddy took the case into consideration, and did not 
H. Eddv; see Dr. Morton again until the 21sl. In the meantime. Dr. Mor- 
p. 397. ton's experiments had been attended with the most flattering suc- 
cess. Two operations had been performed in the hospital to the 
entire satisfaction of the faculty, and the discovery had acquired 
a footing in the medical world ; and prior to the 21st, but the pre- 
cise day is not stated. Dr. Jackson had a conversation with Mr. 
Eddy, was informed of the application of Dr. Morton for a patent,, 
and claimed that he had some connexion with Dr. Morton in. 
making discovery. He called on Dr. Morton on the 23d, and 
it was then arranged that Dr. Jackson was to have SoOO for the- 
information he had given Dr. Morton, if ten per cent, on the pro- 
ceeds of the patent would produce that amount. 



99 

"This arrangement between the parties, settled by and between 
themselves, in a private conference, proved by their subsequent 
conversation with Mr. Eddy, and now denied, shows conclusively 
the view that each had of his respective participation in the dis- 
covery. It was, betv/een them both, distinctly a business trans- 
action — an affair of dollars and cents, and as clearly Dr. Jackson 
called and introduced the conversation — not to assert his rights to 
the discovery — not to inquire as to its success, for of this public 
report had advised him — not to give any advise or caution as to 
its further use, but to claim a compensation in money for the 
advice and information he had ^iven to Morton on the 30th of 
September ; and $500, if ten per cent, on the proceeds of the 
patent would produce it, was agreed upon as the sum to be paid 
for that information. This conversation and agreement is entirely 
consistent with the view" w^e have thus far taken of the case, but 
it is wholly inexplicable on the ground assumed by Dr. Jackson.'" 

This agreement being concluded. Dr. Jackson went home, as 
he himself admits, and charged Dr. Morton -$500 on his books, 
for the information w^hich he had given him. This is the first 
entry or pen mark made by Dr. Jackson with regard to this dis- 
covery, wdiich has come to the knowledge of your committee. It 
is true Dr. Jackson insists that the arrangement, in pursuance of 
which the entry w\as made, was obtained from him by the false- 
hood and subtlety of Dr. Morton. The assertion is easily made, 
but of little Talue against the contradictory statement of Dr, Mor- 
ton, and the whole sequence of facts going fully to sustain that 
statement. A written paper, signed by Dr. Jackson on the 271 h 
of October, 1846, sustains the arrangement resulting in the entry 
by Dr. Jackson: but this, also, he attempts to invalidate, on the 
alleged ground that it v/as altered without his knowledge or con- See Eddy 
sent by Mr. Eddy, the Patent Solicitor, after he had agreed to ^^^^°* 
sign it, and before he signed it, and that thus a false paper was 
palmed upon him. This statement is also wholly unsupported, 
and at variance with proof and probability. The former committee, 
in speaking of the conversation testified to by Mr. Eddy, and the 
arrangement that Dr. Morton should pay Br. Jackson S500, if 
ten per cent, on the proceeds of sale would amount to it, say: 

*'But the representations and advice of Mr, Eddy, the common 
friend of the parties, modified their arrangement. He represented 
to Dr. Morton that Dr. Jackson, from having given him the infor- 
mation and advice spoken of on the 30th of September, was en- 
titled to participate in the patent as a joint discoverer. That if 
he were not joined in the patent, the fact of his giving that infor- 
mation would be used to impeach the patent,"and that if Dr. 
Jackson w^ere joined as a patentee, his name, and his advice and 
assistance would be useful in bringing out the discovery, and giving 
it celebrity. With these arguments Dr. Morton was satisfied, and 



i::0 



consented that Dr. Jackson should be named as a joint discoverer 

in the patent. Mr. Eddv also advij^ed ^\-ith Dr, Jackson, who in- 
formed him that, 'by the laws of the Massachusetts Medical So- 
ciety, he would be prevented from joining with Dr. Morton, in 
taking out'a patent, as he would be expelled from the association 
if he did so. He further stated that he intended to make a pro- 
fessional charge of $500 for the advice he had given him, and 
that Dr. Morton had acceded to this ; that he did not wish his 
name coupled with Dr. Morton in any manner; that Dr. Morton 
might take out a patent, if he desired to do so, and do what he 
pleased with it.' At a subsequent interview, prior to the 27th 
October, Mr. Eddy urged Dr. Jackson to waive his objections to 
associating with Dr. Morton, as 'I was confident that he was 
mistalcen in his views as to what would be the action of the medi- 
cal association ; that Dr. Morton could not properly take out a 
patent without him ; and that by joining in the patent, he would, 
of a certainty, be obtaining credit as a discoverer ; v/hereas, should 
he not do so, he might lose all credit, as in the case of the mag- 
netic telegraph, which I understood from Dr. Jackson, he had 
suggested to Professor Morse.' The objection as to the medical 
society was removed, on consultation with Dr. Gould. Dr. Jack- 
son consented to join in the patent, and it w^as agreed that he 
should have ten per cent, of the proceeds for his interest in it." 

In settling the question to whom belongs the honor of the dis- 
covery, it is unimportant whether Dr. Jackson did, or did not 
desire to give it freely to the world. Such desire, if he had it, 
did not make the discovery his ; and if it were not in fact his, the 
desire is without merit. In one point of yiew only, is the patent 
question and contest relevant, namely : to show what the parties 
understood of their several rights : nor would we touch upon that, 
after the above examination of the subject by the former com- 
mittee of the House, but to add to it another item of evidence. 

After this controversy had arisen and waxed warm, on the 

•day of January, 1847, Messrs. Loring & Hays, the counsel for 
Dr. Jackson, addressed a letter to Dr. Morton, ot which the fol- 
lowing is an extract : 

''It seemed best that the differences between Dr. Jackson and 
yourself siiould not be made public ; on the contrary, that it should 
be generally imderstood the difficulties were in the course of 
adjustment. * ^ * * We have uniformly said, when 
inquired of, that we Vv^ere making arrangements that we hoped 
would distribute the profits of the discovery in such a manner that 
w^ould be satislactory to all parties. 

'^ Under the present circumstances of the case, we think the 
least that, in justice to yourselves and Dr. Jackson, you can offer, 
is twenty-five per cent, of the profits arising from the invention, both 
at home and abroad, in settlement of his claim upon you. * * 



101 

" It is our wish to settle the matter amicably, if possible. We 
hope you will see, by our sug^'estions, that we wish only to have 
a fair distribution of the profits of a discovery made among those 
who cannot, if they disagree, effectually sustain the patent : and 
which, if sustained, promises to give to all parties large sums of 
money for their united co-operation.^^ 

The proposition was rejected by Dr. Morton. This transaction 
shows the view that the parties each entertained, at that time, of 
his rights in the discovery ; and it does not, in the opinion of your 
committee, place Dr. Jackson in a favorable position to denounce 
the patent, in the profits of which he desired thus to participate, 
as "a?i infamous speculation on human suffer ing.^^ 

The former committee proceed to say : 

*^Your committee do not feel that on this question of fact the 
parties ought to be bound by the legal conclusions of their com- 
mon friend, Mr. Eddy, or by the papers which they executed in 
pursuance of his legal advice. But they do consider the commu- 
nications made by t^hem at the time to Mr. Eddy, the mutual 
agreement of the parties between themselves as touching the dis- 
covery, and the tacts admitted by them on the consultation, as 
matter of the utmost importance and significance. A voluntary 
agreement took place between the parties on that day, of which 
both must have understood the full force and effect, and to which 
neither seems to have been, or probably could have been, impelled 
by advice or counsel. It was that the whole right to use the 
discovery under the patent should be and w^as assigned to Dr. 
Morton, he paying to Dr. Jackson ten per cent, on all sales for 
licences. 

'•Your committee cannot here fail to remember the unqualified 
terms of contempt and reprobation in which Dr. Jackson had, 
during the preceding part of the month down almost to the very 
date of this arrangement, spoken of Dr. Morton and his alleged 
ignorance and recklessness in the use of this agent. They cannot 
conceive it possible, if he felt himself to be the true discoverer, 
that he would, by solemn contract, relinquish all power over his 
discovery, and place it solely in the hands of a man of v,diom he 
thought so illy. Dr. Jackson indignantly repels the idea that it 
was done for the purpose of gain ; an<] we think it could not be 
the case, as the pittance reserved to him, if he conceived himself 
the discoverer, was so despicably small. And how could he hope 
to acquire fame by abandoning the; most important discovery of 
the age ? — one which, if it were his, and if under the auspices of 
his reputation, with his skill and science, it were presented to the 
world, could not fail to place him on the highest scientific and 
professional eminence. How could he hope to acquire fame by 
thus surrendering all control over the discpvery, and placing it 



Id tne hanris ci sucli a man as he had representea and stui repre- 
sevxts Dr. Morton to be ? 

** A careful examination of the above detailed acts and conver- 
sations of the parties, down to the 27th of October, about which 
it would seem to your committee there coiilJ be no douot, renaers 
it clear, almost to demonstration, that neither Dr. Jackson nor Dr. 
Morton, nor any of those who had WiStnessed or aided in the ope- 
ration, supposed that Dr. Jackson was entitled to the merit of this 
discovery, or any other merit than that of havins; communicated 
important infoniLation to Dr. Xorton : and if we trace the conduct 
of the pa.rties further, this opimon is but confirmed. 

" On the 7th of November, a capital operation was performed 
by Rr. Hayward, in the hospital, the patient being under the in- 
fluence of sulphuric ether, administered by Dr. Morton. Dr. 
Warren being informed by Dr. Jackson that he suggested the use 
of sulphuric ether to Dr. Morton, invited him to attend and ad- 
minister the ether. He declined, for two reasons : one was that 
he was going out of town: the other, that he couicl not do so con- 
sistently with his arrangements with Dr. Morton ; so the first 
capital operation, under the influence of ether, was successfully 
performed, Dr. Jackson not yet thinking fit ta attend. But in a 
See testi- commimication published in the Boston Daily Advertiser, of March 
mony of igf, 1847, he says: 'I v^^as desirous of testino: the ether in a capi- 
Hayward? ^^^ operation, and Dr. Warren politely consented to have the trial 
made : and its results proved entirely satisfactory, an amputation 
having been performed, under the influence of the ethereal vapor, 
without giving an}' pain to the patient.' It strikes the mind with 
some surprise that Dr. Jackson should claim this operation as an 
experiment made by him at his request, and to satisfy himself of 
the efficacy of the 'ethereal vapor' in a capital operation, when 
the only connexion v/hich he had with the operation was to de- 
cline attending it when specially invited. Indeed, so entirely did 
he omit to inlorm himself on the subject of this experiment, which 
he declares to be his, that, in the above communication, he names 
Dr. Warren as the surgeon who performed the operation, which 
was, in fact, performed by Dr. Hayward. 

"Another surgical operation was performed at the Eromfield 
House, on the 21st of November, the ether again administered by 
Dr. Morton. Dr. Jackson was then present for the first time, on 
invitation, but merely as a spectator. On the 2d of January, 
1847, an operation was performed in the hospital, when Dr. Jack- 
son attended, and brought with him a bag of oxygen gas to re- 
lieve the patient from asphyxia, in case it should supervene. 
Nothing of the kind occurred, and the gas was not used. This 
is the first and only act of Dr. Jackson's made known to your 
committee, which implied that he had any duty to perform in the 
administration of the ether, or that he rested under any responsi- 
bility as to its efi'ects." 



103 

Among the papers not heretofore presented. Dr. Jackt!:oTi h?.s 
braugiu oetore your committee a letter of George T. Dexter, 
dated December 19, 1851, in which the writer states that Dr. 
Jackson, in the year 1842, communicated to him his discovery of 
sulphuric ether as an anaesthetic ag 'nt^ and spoke of it freely, 
earnesciy, ana ooniidentially, as a in . . oi alleviating much hu- 
man suffering in surgical operations ; liif t in the winter of 1842, 
the witness called on Dr. Jackson in his laboratory, who told him 
he continued his experiments with sulphuric ether, and that it was 
likely to prove all that he had anticipated, or more. 

We hear nothing, however, from any other oiiarter, of cor/anued 
lexpeiiments by i)y. jackson, alter that of the winter of 1841 -'2. 
•Dr. Jackson himself does not profess to have made any. 

There is also a letter from D. J. Browne, who says that, in 1845, 
■Dr. Jackson stated to him that he had discovered in the vapor of 
pure sulphuric ether a preventive of pain in surgical operations, 
and that he spoke of its effects in such operations with enthusi- 
asm. To both these gentlemen he made his communications in 
confidence, and no written statement of it appears from either of 
them until December, 1851, four years after the discovery was a 
subject of public contest, and not until after the scientific papers 
had been for nearly as long filled with the statements and evi- 
dence of the conflicting claimants. Without imputing any wilful 
aberration from truth to either of the above-named persons, your 
committee think it but just to remark that their evidence, so far 
as correctness of memory is concerned, is entitled to much less 
"weight than it would have been if given while the controversy was 
fresh and rife, and before full publication. There is certainly 
great danger that a witness who has read v/ith feelings of par- 
tiality the mass of evidence exhibited in this controversy, and 
the conflicting publications of the parties and their friends, will, 
when he attempts to state a conversation relative to the subject 
which occurred six or nine years ago, blend with his recollection 
of it the statements and the evidence which has been four years 
with it in his mind, and thus cause the one to be colored by or 
mistaken for the other. For reasons akin to this, the English 
courts of chancery will not permit a witness to be examined m a 
^cause after publication of the evidence. And, in the opinion of 
your committee, this evidence weighs but as dust in the balance 
against the evidence growing out of the acts and omissions of Dr. 
Jackson, which your committee have already considered. Dr. 
Jackson may have told these persons all that he wrote to M. Elie 
^e Beaumont on the 13th of November, 1846, but even this your 
committee think improbable. He may have repeated in his own 
person the speculations of Dr. Beddoes and Sir Humphrey Davy, 
connected with the experiments of Dr. Townsend. Dr. Wells did 
rthis, and even more. This knowledge of these speculations had 



104 

become the common possession of the medical mind, a common^ 
highway, in which it was not disco^^Tery to travel. And it in- 
volves no improbability to suppose that these persons were mis- 
taken as to the exact statement that Dr. Jackson made them, and 
that it is colored and extended in their letters. 

The last deposition of Dr. N. C. Keep, laid before the former 
committee of the House shortly before the coming in of their re- 
port, shows what wild freaks feeling and imagination sometimes 
plays with human memory. He testifies as follows : 

" I became associated in the business and practice of dentistry 
with Dr. Morton on the 28th day of November, in the year 1846. 
On the next day we were about to prepare an advertisement for 
publication, when Dr. Augustus A. Gould called at our roomg. 
Being pressed with business, I requested him to write the adver- 
tirsment, with which request he complied. After he had written 
it, which he did at his own house, he brought it to me, and we 
read it together. In it the discovery of etherization, without any 
suggestion having been made by me to that effect, was ascribed 
in explicit terms to Dr. Charles T. Jackson. Dr. Gould, pointing 
wdth his finger to the words in which this ascription was expressed, 
said to me 'that will please Jackson.^ I then showed the adver- 
tisement to Dr. Morton, and we read it together. He then ex- 
claimed with emphasis, ' that is good ; I like that ; I'll take it to 
See Dr. the printer.' Copies of the advertisement were made under the 
Gould, p. direction of Dr. Morton, and, as I suppo,sed at the time, without 
alteration, and pubRshed by his order in three evening newspa- 
pers. On seeing the advertisement in the Evening Traveller, on 
the evening of the same day, I ^vas greatly surprised to find that 
the words which ascribed the ether discovery to Dr. Jackson had 
been struck out. The next morning I called the attention of Dr. 
Morton to the fact, and asked him v/hy he struck out those w^ords. 
He hesitated, and seemed not to know what to say, when I said 
to him : 'Morton, why do you quarrel with Jackson ? You in- 
jure yourself, and injure the cause.' Hie reply was : 'I wouldn't 
if he would behave himself. The credit of the discovery belongs 
to Dr. Jackson ; Jackson shall have the credit of it ; I want to 
make money out of it.' 

" I stated the foregoing facts to my family on the aforesaid 
evening, and afterwards to other individuals. I have heretofore 
declined voluntarily testifying to them, but consider that I have 
no right, upon a call of euch a nature as is now made upon me, to 
withhold the testimony. 

"N. C. KEEP. 

'^Boston, February 8, 1849." 



265, 



105 

On this the former committee remark : 

" When this deposition was received, the chairman of your 
committee showed it to Dr. Morton, who in a few minutes brought 
to him a bound book entitled 'Miscellaneous Notes.' On the 91st 
page was a manuscript in the handwriting of Dr.. A. A. Gould, 
written evidently oa the outside sheet of a letter addressed to Dr. 
A. A. G., and post-marked * Washington City, D. C, July 9,' 
from all which it was most manifest that this was the original draft 
of the advertisement testified to by Dr. Keep. This paper, con- 
trasted with the evidence of Dr. Keep as- the contents of an ori 
ginal draft, fixes in the minds of your committee the just value of 
this species of evidence. The paper is as follows : 

" ' The subscribers, having associated themselves in the busi- 
ness of dental surgery, would respectfully invite their friends to 
call on them at their rooms. No. 19 Tremont Row ; they confi- 
dently believe that the increased fa^cilities which their united ex- 
perience will afford them of performing operations with elegance 
and despatch, and the additional advantage -of having them per- 
formed without pain, by the use of the fluid recently invented by 
Doctors Jackson and Morton, will not only meet the wishes of 
their former patienils, but secure to them additional patronage.' " 

Your committee also exan>ined the ©riginal paper, which is the 
subject of the above deposition, and are satisfied that it has never 
been altered by erasui^e or interlineation since it came from the 
hands of Dr. Gould. The entire narrative, therefore, of Dr. 
Keep that the paper originally conceded the whole merit of the 
discovery to Dr. Jackson, the conversation relating to that, the 
alteration by Dr. Morton befare publication, the reproof given 
him by the witness, and Dr. Morton's reply, still insisting that 
the credit w^as due to Dr. Jackson, and that he should have it, is 
all shown to be false from begijining to end, the mere creation of 
an excited imagination. Not an error in regard to the force of 
terms, as is probably the case in the two former depositions con- 
sidered above, but a statement which, by a fortunate reference 
made in it to a written paper, is proved to have no foundation 
whatsoever in truth. 

Your committee cannot better present their views of the mass 
of evidence filed before the former committee of the House than 
by here embodying in its connexion so much of their report as 
relates to it. They say : 

"The testimony of Don P. Wilson and J. E. Hunt, who wxre 
assistants in Dr. Morton's shop for a few months, commencing in 
November, 1846, is adduced to impeach the evidence of Leavitt, 
Spear, and Hayden, by their alleged declarations, and the title 
of Dr. Morton to the discovery, by his declarations. This is a 
species of testimony against which the books on evidence espe- 



106 

cially put uS on our guard, it is a sweeping Kind oi e^^idence j^ 
whicii covers everything , and if tbs impiitsd conversation be V'^i- m 
vate. or if it be ger^era!, (as ae ^-ofcen said,-' or ^'always said,") ■ 
it is often difficait to subject the evidence to the ordinary tests of * 
surrounding circumstances and inherent probability, so as to fix 
its value. There is enough, however, in these depositions to show 
that they ara of out iime weignr. It is to be remembered, in the 
first place, that they are in direct contradiction to the testimony of 
Whitman, Spear, Leavitt, and Hayden, and they contradict by 
strong implication the testimony of Mr. Metcalf and jSIr. Wight- 
man, the character of all and each of whom is most satisfactorily 
vouched. The testimony of these two witnesses cannot be true, 
unless the first four above named entered ii:tc a conspiracy to 
carry a pomt oy perjury ; but, as to them, we have examined their 
evidence — we have tested it by its agreement with surrounding 
circumstances, and we are satisfied of its truth. 

"This of itself would be enough to dispose of the testimony of 
Wilson and Hunt ; but it is proper to look at the inherent char- 
acter of their evidence. 

"Wilson, in the commeficement of his depcjsition, swears, by way 
of recital, that Dr. Charles T. Jackson was the discoverer of the 
application of ether to produce insensibility to pain in surgical 
:\Ir. Mor- operations : and, among other things, he says, ' Morton first 
tT ^Weilst c/«^^'^^?^^ ^^^e discovery to be his cum,' in February, 1847. To say 
Oct. 19^ nothing of the looseness and total want of caution with which 
1846, p. the fact of the discovery is stated — a fact of which Mr. Wilson 
^' certainly had no knowledge whatever — he testifies directly against 

the recorded fact in the secosd particular, for Dr. Morton did 
claim the discovery as early as September 30, 1846, and his claim 
was given to the world the next daj^ in the public prints. His 
claim, and his alone, was known to the surgeons of the hospital 
during the month of October, and his public circulars and the 
numerous ansv/ers to them, which he has exhibited to the com- 
mittee, show that during all that time, and at all times, he claimed 
the discovery publicly and to the world as his own. The witness 
goes on to say: 'In the administration of the ether I was guided 
by and solely relied tipon the advice and assurances of Dr. Jack- 
See Dr. son, received through Morton. We never dared to follow Mor- 
^°2fir'. ^* ^^'^'^ <^'''^ directions, — aiid adds that, if they had, the conse- 
Also 'di. quences would probably have beon fatal and etherization a failure. 
Bigelow And further, that he never knew Morton ' to apply it to a patient 
and others. ^-^^ ^^g ojice. This was from a most apparent fear and shunning 
of responsibility.' 

" Now as to the ad^ace and assurances of Dr. Jackson^ alleged 
to have been received from time to time through Dr. Morton, we 
Lave no reason to suppose that any such repeated intercourse and 
communication took place daring that time, and we have no eri- 



107 

cenct Ox the sct^ihl fact ot anv sui ^^ meeting and instructions. 
On the contrary, there is evidencf o. iiKind iselmgs existing on 
Dr. Jackson's part towards Dr. Morton ; and in the opinion ot 
your committee the testimoiiy of Dr. Keep indirectly contradicts 
the testimony of Wilson on that point, and directly upon each of 
the other points last named. Dr. Keep's object and the tendency 
of his evidence is to depreciate Dr. Moi'ton ; but for faults the 
very reverse of those with which he is charged by Wilson, namely, 
a ^ rasii, rec/clessness,' instead of "^ <3 most Tnanif est fear of respon- 
sibility,'' m administering the ether ; and he evidently is impressed 
with the belief, and designs to let it be known, that the success 
of etherization depended upon his skill and prudence. He says, 
'it was his {Morton's) practice during that time to administer Seetesti- 
ihe ether Y\dthout any adequate provision for the admission of at-^^^^^^*^® 
mospheric air ,' and lohenever operations were 'performed hy other 
persons in the office, and under his supervision, he directed the 
application in the same way, in consequence of which many of 
the operations were unsuccessful, and great distress and suffering 
were induced.' Dr. Keep then st^es that he' made ample provi- 
sion for the admission of atmospheric air, and advised the assist- 
ants to do the same thing; but 'they being influenced by his 
(Morton's) directions and knov^^n wishes, did not at all times fol- 
low my advice.' Not a word is said by Dr. Keep of any advice 
or directions coming from Dr. Jackson, which, if it had actually 
occurred, must have been known to him, and would have formed 
an important item in the current incidents of the time. The evi- 
dence of these tvvo witnesses stand thus : They were in the office 
of Dr. Morton, during the same * thirty days,' Keep the superior, 
Wilson the assistant. Keep says Dr. Morton vvas in the habit of 
administering the ether in a particular manner, and that he was 
rash and reckless. Wilson says that lie never administered it at 
all, and that he was timid and shrank from responsibility. But 
the surgeons of the hospital agree with neither one nor the other, 
but show that he repeatedly administered it in the hospital him- 
self, to their entire satisfaction, and v/ith entire success. Wilson 
says the assistants in the office would not follow the directions of 
Dr. Morton, but relied upon such as were brought from Dr. Jack 
son. Keep says nothing about instructions fi^om Dr. Jackson, 
but that the assistants in the office were influenced by Wiiq direc- 
tions and known wishes of Dr. Morton, so that his salutary advice 
and remonstrances were often of no avail. Wilson says Dr. Mor- 
ton explained to him, an assistant in his office, very fully all the 
particulars of the discovery and patent; but to Dr. Keep, his 
partner, he extended no such confidence. We leave these two 
depositions to be viewed in their strong contrast ; and as to the 
testimony of Don P. Wilson, considering its inherent improbabi- 
lity, the suspicious nature of tJie species of testimony to which it 



108 

"belongs, the manner in which it is contradicted ^irectly and in- 
directly by the evidence of Dr.. Keep ; and when we further con- 
sider that it is directly opposed to the evidence of Whitman, 
Spear, Leavitt, and Dr. Hayden, and indirectly to that of Metcalf 
and Wightman ; and that it is also in direct conflict with numer- 
ous public printed cards and notices of the day, we feel that we 
cannot give it the slightest weight or consideration. 

"The testimony of John E. Hunt is subject to the same objec- 
tions with those of Don P. Wilson, and other objections which 
your committee will now proceed to notice. In order to bring 
out a declaration on the part of Spear, that he had never taken the 
ether, he represents him as taking it one evening, and in the ex- 
citement produeed by it, seizing upon a countryman present, and 
handling him roughly. The apology which Spear makes to the 
countryman is, Hhis was the first time he had ever taken the ether;' 
not that it was the first time ether so affected him, or that the 
rudeness was committed under the influence of ether, but that it 
was the first tim.e he hiu\ ev# taken the ether — a fact which had 
little to do with the act of rudeness, and was a most irrelevant 
apology. But the inquiry thereupon made by Mr. Hunt is most 
remarkably inconsequent ; he having heard Spear say that it was 
the first time he had ever taken ether, asks him if it *ever affected 
him in the same way before.' Now, if he had been pressing 
Spear with a cros.s examination, in order to entrap him in some 
important admission, the inquiry might, perhaps, have been made ; 
but it was the7i a matter of no importance whatever whether 
Spear had breathed the vapor of ether or not, and it becomes in 
the highest degree improbable that both branches of the conver- 
sation, so inconsistent with each other, actually occurred ; and as 
the statement contradicts the testimony of so many respectable 
witnesses, and is in itself improbable, your committee do not feel 
bound to give it credence. Again : in a Vvalk vnih Spear, Hunt 
gets from him a full disclosure of the discovery, and a statement 
that it belonged to Dr. Jackson. According to this. Dr. Morton 
got the requisite information and instructions from Dr. Jackson ; 
came home; tried it on a woman, and it ic or ked first-rate ; and he 
had since then continued to use it under the directions of Dr. 
Jackson. The evidence shows that Spear well knew that the 
experiment was not tried on a woman, but on a mail, whose cer- 
tificate was read next day by hundreds in the city of Boston. 
But the witness evidently took this part of the story from the 
narrative of Don P. Wilson (whose deposition was taken on the 
same day) about the refractory female patient named in the con- 
versation with Dr. Jackson on the oOth of September, who was 
to be cheated with atmospheric air, administered from a gas-bag. 

"From among the thousands with whom Dr. Morton conamu- 
nicated, touching this discovery, during the winter of 1846 and 



iS47, some, six or seven, with whom he had personal- controver- 
sies, testify to his admissions that he Wd.s not the discoverer. 
They differ as to the degrees of directness and fullness with which 
he opened the matter to them, but it will be found, as your com- 
mittee beheve, to be a rule in this caste, having no exception, that 
the more violent the hostility of the individual, the more fiercely 
he assailed Dr. Morton's patent, the more free Morton became in 
his communication, and the more fully did be unbosom himself; 
and his statements always went directly to defeat his own claims, 
and support the defence of the opponent to v/kom he made it. 
For example, H. S. Payne says Hhat, in the early part of Decem- 
ber, 1846, he commenced applying the vapor of ether to produce 
insensibility to pain in surgical operations. This was after I had 
heard of the discovery of the preparation by Charles T. Jackson, 
of the city of Boston.' He then states that Dr. Clarke purchased 
of Dr. Morton a right, under the patent, tor Rensselaer and sev- 
eral adjoining counties, v/ho sold to Dr. Eordell ; and Dr. Payne 
was notified by Dr. Biake, as the agent of Dr. Morton, to aban- 
don the use of ether in his practice. After failing in an attempt 
at negotiation with Dr. Bordell, he went to Boston and had an 
interview with Dr. Morton, who not once only, but repeatedly, 
declared that Dr. Jackson was the sole discoverer : Hhat ail the 
knowledge he possessed in relation to its properties and applica- 
tion came from Dr. Jackson, and that he never had any idea of 
applying sulphuric ether, or that sulphuric ether could be applied 
for the aforesaid purposes, until Dr. Jackson had suggested it to 
him, and had given him full instructions.' This most frank com- 
munication raises at once a difficulty about the patent, which is 
obviously void, if that statement be true ; and Dr. Morton attempts 
to remove it by saying ^that he had been very fortunate in affect- 
ing an arrangement with Dr. Jackson before any one else had the 
opportunity, and that he was the first man to whom Dr. Jackson 
communicated the discovery.' And he adds: 'Dr. Morton 
again and again said that he was not in any way the discoverer 
of the new application of ether, but that the idea had been first 
communicated to himby Dr. Jackson, toho was its discoverer, and 
that his (Dr. Morton^ s) interest in the patent was merely a pur- 
chased one ; and, moreover, that he vms very lucky in anticipa- 
ting all other persons by first receiving so precious a discovery 
from the lips of Dr. Jackson.'' 

"After seeing the fullness and unreserved character of this im- 
portant conversation, and the apparent earnestness with which Dr. 
Morton attempts to impress the fact that he had no participation 
whatever in the discovery, not satisfied with sufferijig it to escape 
him inadvertently or even stating it once, but repeating it 'again' 
and 'again,' as if he were anxious to impress it, one could not but 
be surprised to know that Dr. Payne, before this conversation, 



110 

had pirated this discovery; had set up for himself; bade defiance 
to Dr. Morton and his assignees ; and on his return home, publish- 
ed a card, in which he by no means denies that Dr. Morton dis- 
covered the thing which he and his assignees are using, but aver- 
ring that his (Dr. Payne's) anodyne vapor, which in his affidavit 
he admits to be sulphuric ether, 'ie not the invention of the great 
Dr. Morton, but an entirely superior article, and all persons must 
beware how they infringe on his rights.' And the more especial- 
ly is it surprising v/hen we reflect that this state of facts, which 
T)y. Morten took such unusual pains to repeat and to impress 
upon this his most determined opponent, w^ould, if true, render the 
patent v<rholly void in his hands, and put his discovery entirely in 
the power of Dr. Payne, and all others who should see fit to 
avail themselves of it. There can be no absolute proof that Dr. 
Morton did not make these statements ; but it is clear that it was 
against his interest to make them ; and there is also full proof 
that they are not true, and that they are in direct opposition to 
his numerous printed and published statements. They are not 
true ; for, besides the six witnesses who testify directly or indi- 
rectly to the discovery in its inception and progress, it distinctly 
conflicts with the conversation of the parties, and their mutual 
understanding, on the 26th and 27th of October, as testified to by 
R. H. Eddy. It is in direct conflict with the claim promulgated 
by Dr. Morton, and received and accredited by the scientific gen- 
tlemen in the medical hospital, who performed the operations 
testing the efficacy of the disca\-ery. 

^' Dr. Warren says : 

" ' Boston, January 6, 1847. 

'^ ^I hereby declare and certify, to the best of my knowledge 
and recollection, that I never heard of the use of sulphuric ether 
by inhalation, as a means of preventing the pains in surgical 
operations, until it was suggested by Dr. W. T. G. Morton, in 
the latter part of October, 1846.' 

"And alike opposed to all the numerous printed circulars 
which Dr. Morton and his agents had distributed and were then 
distributing in every part of the United States. It appears that 
prior to this date. Dr. Morton's attention had been called to an 
opposing claim to the discovery, and to the experiments at the 
hospital, and he had taken a decided publie stand against them, 
as witness his circular, published the 20th day of November, 
1846, and the note thereto attached : 



Ill 

" ^Dental operations without pain, 

" ' Dr. Morton has made a great improvement in dental and 
surgical operations, for which letters patent have been granted 
by the Government of the United States, and to secure which 
measures have been taken in foreign nations. 

*^ ^Having completed the necessary preparations for the pur- 
pose, and greatly enlarged his establishment, Dr. Morton respect- 
fully announces to his friends and the public that he is now ready 
to afford every accommodation to persons requiring dental opera- 
tions. 

" 'His assistants and apartments are so numerous, and his 
entire arrangements on so superior a scale, that immediate and 
the best attention can be given to every case, and in every branch 
of his profession. 

'' ' The success of this improvement has exceeded the most 
sanguine expectations, not only of himself and patients, but of the 
very skilful and distinguished surgeons who have performed ope- 
rations with it at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and other 
places in Boston, or witnessed its use at his office. Rooms, No, 
19 Tremont row. 

" ' Boston jYovember 20, 1846. 

a i *^# Inasmuch as one or two persons have presumed to ad- 
vertise my improvement as their own, and even issued notices to^ 
the effect that the applications of it at the hospital were made by 
them, and that the certificates of its efficacy and value were given 
to them by the surgeons of that institution, 1 feel it my duty 
to warn the public against such false and unwarrantable state- 
ments ; and at the same time to caution all persons against 
making, aiding, or abetting in any infringement of my rights, if 
they would avoid the trouble and cost of prosecutions and da- 
mages at law.' 

"And your committee do not think it credible that Dr. Morton, 
resting his claims to the discovery on the grounds which he did — 
having a most decided public opinion at home in his favor as the 
discoverer — having freshly tasted of the intoxicating draught of 
fame — and recently, in the public papers and in circulars, asserted 
his authorship of the discovery and defied his rivals — they do not 
think it credible that he should seize the first occasion which 
offered, in conversation with a most determined opponent, to de- 
clare the falsehood of all that he had written, published and 
claimed — to disclaim the honor which the world so generally and 
freely accorded to him — confess away all his pecuniary rights 
under the patent — and even support his surrender, disclaimer and 
sacrifice by a self-debasing assertion which he well knew was 
false. The improbability is too strong to allow it credit. 



112 

"But Dr. Payne says, that in the early part of December, 
1846, he commenced his operations with sulphuric ether, and 
that this was after he had heard of the discovery of Dr. Charles 
T. Jackson, of Boston. How he heard of the discovery of Dr. 
Jackson he does not say ; surely not by the information of the 
scientific men of Boston, for they attributed the discovery to Dr. 
Morton ; not by the public prints, cards, and advertisement, for 
the name of Dr. Morton alone appeared there ; and he says, in 
conclusion, that he was very muck astonished in learning, some 
time after his visit to Boston, that Dr. Morton ^ asserted any claim 
whatever' to the discovery, and this, after the publication and 
circulation of "the notices, cards and circulars of Dr. Morton, and 
after the witness had long been engaged in an embittered contest 
wdth Morton and his assignees, and the publication of his (Dr. 
Payne's) card.* 

" Dr. Allen Clarke, who also testifies to admissions by Dr. 
Morton, but much less strongly than Dr. Payne, and whose state- 
ment may well be the result of a misunderstanding, made the 
more decided by hostility to Dr. Morton, and a desire to defeat 
his patent, was the purchaser of a right, for which he gave his 
note for 8350. He at length determined not to pay the note, but 
to join in contesting the patent, and he expresses the opinion, 
that by keeping up the controversy for one year, the patent would 
be broken down. Dr. Blaisdell says ' Clarke would not pay you, 
for he could get the use of the letheon for one year before you 
could get the license from them, and by that time they could ruin 
the sale of it there,' and he might well have added, and with it 
the discoverer ; a very common fortune to men who render the 
most important services to their race. 

" Time, and the reasonable limits of a report, will not allow 
your committee to dwell upon the few remaining items of kindred 
testimony. The weight and strength of them have been consi- 
dered ; and the residue, like them, are composed of alleged 
statements by Dr. Morton to persons with whom he then had, or 
has since had, personal controversies touching his discovery, and 
they are all in contradiction to the claims which Dr. Morton 
daily promulgated in print to the world. Those printed papers 
are, as your committee conceive, the best evidence of what Dr. 
Morton all that time claimed, and what he conceded ; they are 

*" Notice. — Dr. Payne has just returned from Boston, and has only time 
now to give notice to his friends and the public, that in a day or two he will be 
able to show to the public that the anodyne vapour which he has used is not 
the invention of the great Dr. Morton, but an entirely superior article, and that 
he shall contijiue to use it. And all persons must beware how they infringe on 
Ms rights." Extract of a letter of Mr. E. Filley, attorney of Dr. A. Clarke, of 
Lansingburg, New York, to Dr. Morton's attorney of Boston : "As one Dr. H. 
J. Payne, dentist of the city of Troy, persists in the use of the apparatus and 
gas, and proclaims defiance to Dr. Morton and any of his assigns, Dr. Clark is 
completely thwarted in his enjoyment of the rights secured to him by Dr. Mor- 
ton. The conduct of Dr. Payne is particularly annoying." 



113 

of the time and of the transaction; they do not admit of misstate- 
ment, misconstruction, or falsification ; they are of unvarying and 
exact memory ; and they speak the language of undoubted truth 
as to the claims, though not as to the rights of the author. His 
claims, contemporaneous with these papers, are what thtse wit- 
nesses attack. His rights we have already considered ; and, as 
to the evidence of his claims, that which he insisted and said was 
his, the pubhshed papers stand against the testimony of these 
■witnesses, as written or printed evidence against parol. His 
alleged confessions, made under the most improbable circum- 
stances, are in direct contradiction to his printed circulars, daily 
and contemporaneously promulgated to the world. If, then, 
these alleged parol admissions stood against the printed and pub- 
lished papers, v/ithout anything beside to add strength to either, 
"we could not, in our conscience, in weighing the conduct of men 
by rational probabilities, hesitate to give the decided preponder- 
ance to the printed over the parol evidence. But the parol 
evidence runs counter to all the leading facts in the case hereto- 
fore considered and established, in the opinion of your committee, 
hy the most indubitable proof, while the printed circulars and 
notices entirely agree with them, and make with them one uni- 
form and consistent whole. The objects of the parties, their 
claims, their efforts, their purposes appear the same throughout. 
The deposition of A. Blaisdeil is, however, worthy of especial 
comment. At the time he professes to have had the conversation 
in which Dr. Morton accords all the merit of the discovery to 
Dr. Jackson, he v/as the agent of Dr. Morton, spreading his cir- 
culars throughout the land ; had taken care to send one of them 
to each and every surgeon dentist in New York; and yet now 
declares that he was especially charged with the information 
which he takes care to inculcate, that these circulars were all 
false in the most material point, and that the patent which he is 
selling is void by reason of that falsehood.* He was at the same 
time in habits of almost daily correspondence with Dr. Morton ; 
and the difficulties which he met w^ith occurred while he was 
absent, and it would m.ost naturally have suggested itself to him 
to commuiiicate them to Dr. Morton by letter, and in that way 
get his assent to obviate them by declaring Dr. Jackson the sole 

* Extract fro7ii A. BlaisdelPs letter to Dr. Morton, dated Neio York, Decem- 
/)er 29, 1816. — ^-^I am sendiog one of your circulars to ever3'' dentist in New 
York." 

New York, December 31, 1846. — "I have sent a circular to every dentist in 
New York city, and written on the cover where I am to be found." 

In a letter fi:om Pittsburg, dated February 1, 1847, he writes : <« I gave him a 
few circulars to give his neighbours." llemarks to the same effect occur in 
other letters. 

October 26, 1846. — «' Dr. Morton has discovered a compound, by inhaling 
which a person is thrown into a sound sleep, and rendered insensil le to pain," 

■&C. 

8 



ii4 

discoverer. But he does not do so ; if he had, his letter and Dr. 
Morton's answer would have been in writing ; and, then, if there 
were truth in the statement of those alleged admissioms, there 
would have been one item of written evidence to support them. 
Eut this is wholly wanting. Blaisdell professes to have v>'aited 
till his return to Boston, and then to have held a private conver- 
sation vrith Dr. Morton, who at once and eagerly admitted away 
his whole claim, both to money and reputation. 

*'It is remarkable that, in more than three months, during all 
which thime these witnesses say Dr. Morton conceded to Dr. 
Jackson the merit of being the 'sole discoverer,' during all which 
time he was daily writing and almost daily publishing, there is 
not produced one line written by Dr. Morton, or written to him, 
countenancing the idea ; nor is there one act of his which looks 
to such admission. A written admission, or an ambiguous para- 
graph in waiting, w^hich could be fairly construed into an admis- 
sion, or a letter written to him during that time, which could be 
reasonably construed to refer to such admission, would be tenfold 
the value of all the parol testimony now presented, of those ad- 
missions. Dr. Morton has shown to the committee several bound 
volumes of letters addressed to him upon this subject, all of 
which recognize him as the discoverer. Yiewing these state- 
ments in this point of light, comparing them with the printed and 
published papers,* in whieh Dr. Morton contemporaneously and 
continually asserted his claims to the discovery, and finding them 
opposed, as they are, to the well-settled facts of the case already 
considered, they weigh, in our opinion, as dust in the balance, 
and in no wise affect the Vv'ell settled facts of the case."t 



* " To the public. — Dr. Morton, surgeon dentist, l^o. 19 Tremo-nt rovr, Bos- 
ton, liereby gives public notice that letters patent liaye been granted Mm by 
the government of the United States for his improvement, whereby pain may be 
prevented in dental and surgical operations."' — Boston Evening Transcript^ 
November 20, 1846. 

^^ Important information for the pullic at large. — I do hereby give this public 
notice, and warn all persons against using my invention.''^ "I am particularly 
desirous that my invention, should not be abused or intrusted to ignorant or im- 
proper hands, or applied to nefarious purposes." "]\ew York Express, Balti- 
more Patriot, United States (Philadelphia) Gazette, will please insert the above 
twice every week for four weeks, and send their bills to this office." In same 
faper December 4, 1846. 

t In answer to a communication by Dr. J. F. Flagg, in which he threatens to 
take possession of the invention, and in which he attributes the credit of it, if 
there was any, to Dr. C. T. Jackson, Dr. Morton says: "Unless he can show — 
and I do not know anybody else that can — that (to use his own words) it has 
been known and published for some years that the vapor of sulphuric ether 
would produce the visible effects now said to be discovered, then the invention 
is original." — Bosto-n Evejiing Transcript, December 10, 1846. 

In a letter frcm Dr. TTells (Bosten Post, April, 1847,) he makes the following 
extract from Dr. Morton's letter to him in the early part of October, 1846 : "The 
letter which is thus introduced with my signature, was written in answer to one 
which I received from Dr. Morton, who represeneed to me that he had discovered 
a compound." 



115 

It may not be irrevelent to remark that there is not, in all this 
mass of depositions and letters, any contemporaneous written pa- 
per supporting Dr. Jackson's claim to the discovery, or impugning 
i)r. Morton's — all is parol. Declarations made by Dr. Jackson 
asserting the claim, and declarations made by Dr. Morton, even 
in the heat of the controversy, to his most violent enemies, aban- 
doning his claims and surrendering them to Dr. Jackson. But 
no written paper sustaining either. And where in two in- 
stances the statement of Dr. Jackson touches a paper v^ritten or 
signed by himself, he repudiates them as false, and as obtained 
by circumvention and fraud ; because, if true, they disprove his 
claim. And in the instances in which the testimony of his wit- 
nesses, tending the admissions and abandonment of Dr. Morton, 
can be directly tested by written papers, they are thereby in every 
instance proved to be false. Your committee consider that spe- 
cies of parol evidence, made up of alleged declarations of the 
parties merely, unsupported by a single written paper, but con- 
tradicted by every thing in writing which they touch, entitled to 
no weight w^iatever, against the well knov/n and fully admitted 
acts of the parties in this case. 

Of Dr. Jackson's acts, while the surgeons of the principal 
curative institution in New England — the Massachusetts General 
Hospital — were applying the critical test to a discovery which he 
now claims as his own, the committee have before them new 
evidence in the tollowing letter, upon wl;ich they forbear to com- 
ment farther than to remark how decidedly it confirms the con- 
clusions at which they have already arrived. 

Dr. Henry J. BigeJow, Professor in Harvard University, and 
Surgeon in the Massachusetts General Hospital, in answer to a let- 
ter of the RoiT, Geo. T. Davis, says: 

Boston, February 5, 1852. 

Dear Sir : I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your letter, 
dated January 21, addressed to Dr. Hayward, Dr. Townsend, and 
myself, and containing the followijQg extract from a written re- 
monstrance of Dr. Charles T. Jackson, which has been laid be- 
fore a committee of the House of Representatives : 

**Th£ cause of asphyxia, so commonly produced in the early 
administration of ether at the Massachusetts General Hospital, I 
traced directly to the employment of those valved inhalers. In 
the weakened state of respiratory action, under anaesthetic agents, 
the valves are not raised in attempts to breathe, and the patient 
is drowned by the pure ether or chloroform vapor. On the re- 
moval of the valve by my directions, asphyxia at once ceased to 
occur at the hospital, and I had no occasion to employ the oxy- 



116 

gen gas to revive the patients, as I was requested to do by one 
of the eminent surgeons of that institution ; for no asphyxia hap- 
pened after my advice was followed, to throw aside the inhalers 
and use a sponge." 

In detailing as you request "a precise recollection of facts upon 
these points so far ^-^^s they fell under my personal observation," I 
may say that, to the best of my knowledge, being very familiar 
with those early experiments at the hospital, generally administer- 
ing the ether myself: 

1st. There was no more asphyxia then, from ether, than there 
is now. 

2d. There was certainly no period at which asphyxia at once 
ceased to occur at the hospital. 

3d. This alleged asphyxia had little or no connexion with any 
Talves. 

4th. I never heard that any valves were suppressed, nor that 
Dr. Jackson suppressed them. 

5th. Asphyxia, as it then occurred, was of no great importance, 
and was dependent upon the same causes w^hich sometimes pro- 
duce it now. 

6th. When Dr. Jackson brought oxygen gas to the hospital, 
nobody required it; it was not used, nor has it been, to my 
knowledge, anywhere since used in this connexion. 

In reply to your inquiry how far Dr. Jackson personally super- 
intended the earl}' administration of ether at the hospital, I answer 
not at all. He not only exercised no superintendence at the hos- 
pital, assumed no responsibility, but actually did not come there 
for more than tvro months after ether was regularly in use in that 
institution.* 

I will venture to allude to another point, which is of no im- 
portance to anybody but myself. Yet it directly concerns me, 
and I should be glad of an opportunity to refer to it, in order to 
refute certain statements of Dr. Jackson. In a part of his "re- 
monstrance," Dr. Jackson uses, as I am informed, the following 
words : 

"The fev/ medical gentlemen, or young sur^jeons, connected 
with the hospital, who have not fully recognized my rights in this 
discovery, are, I lament to say it, anxious to obtain a larger share 
of the glory than rightfully belongs to them; and one of themf 

* h * * * * 

" Dr. H. J. Bigelow very distinctly claims the honor of being 
the first to promulgate this great discovery, the first to make the 
profession acquainted with it, he having stealthily published my 
discovery before I wa« ready to lay it before the public, and while 

* See Dr. Townsend, p. o5o. 

f A. part of the argument here is a little loose and is omitted. 



117 

I was temporarily absent from the city, by reading an account of 
it before two societies of which I was, and am now, a member — 
the Boston Society for Medical Improvement and the American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences — and afterwards published his? 
paper in the Eoston Medical and Surgical Journal, against my 
solemn protest and denunciation of it as false, unjust, and quack- 
ish. In that paper, a copy of the journal containing which I 
send to you, please observe that the nature ol the agent used is 
carefully concealed, and hence it is a mere quack advertisement." 

The paDer above alluded to was the first paper upon the newly 
discovered effects of ether. It was intended by Dr. Morton, and 
did happen to be the instrument by w^hich the discovery was an- 
nounced to the profession and the world at large, both in this 
country, where it was attacked by the incredulous, and in Europe, 
where it was widely reprinted. 

This paper,* to quote a contemporary publication, was intended 
to be a narration of physiological facts observed by myself, with 
a few concluding remarks connected with the patent right. It 
w^as published more than five years ago, and those objections of 
Dr. Jackson's are now to me altogether new, and I believe they 
are also new to everybody else. 

It will only be necessary to state in reply : 1st. That Dr. Jack- 
son could not at that time, for the want of the requisite facts, 
have himself written this physiological paper. In fact that 
nothing but his present assertion shows that he had either the in- 
tention or desire to do it, and that there was no reason whatever 
either to consult him either in leading or vmting tlie paper^ or to 
suppose that lie wished to be consulted. 

2d. That he read the paper before it w^as printed, and assented 
to its publication in print. 

1, One thing is very striking. Dr. Jackson never sav/ a single 
surgical or dental operation with ether until long after it was a 
confirmed discovery, and until weeks, if not njonths, after this 
paper v/as printed. As this paper was an account of the new 
physiological effects of ether, observed in Dr, Morton's and other 
experiments. Dr. Jackson, who saw none of these experiments, 
would have been unable to have made any coramunication to a 
society upon this point, even it he had wished to, fo>r the simple 
reason that for two months he had not the requisite mnterials, 
but nobody will now believe that he wished to make any such 
communication ; he had, according to his own statement, kept 
the matter from the public for years, and we may reasonably infer 
that he would have done so till this day, if the disclosure had 
been left to him. And it is well known that lie kept aloof 
for a long time from any public connexion Avith Dr. Morton or 

* Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, Deceml>er, 1846. 



118 

with ether, while physiological j^apers were written by the dozen 
by other people, without any objection on his part. 

I should have been certainly most happy to have consulted Dr. 
Jackson, had I any idea that, as he now pretends, he desired it ; 
but even if I had done so, it is plain that he could have given me 
Ro information upon the subject which was under investigation, for 
he had no control whatever over Dr. Morton's experiments — he 
had never seen them, nor had he any authority to make use of 
them, if he had seen them. The paper alluded to was not de- 
signed to promulgate old theory nor the suspicions of two years' 
standing, which Dr. Jackson claims, but new facts, and for these 
I applied to Dr. Morton. He instltuied the experiments ; he had 
their sole control ; he took the responsibility of them, while Dr. 
Jackson kept out of the way. 

The application of ether for anesthetic purposes, w^^s at that 
time supposed by everybody to be wholly in the hands of Dr. 
Morton. Dr. Morton, through the intervention of a friend of 
his, who was also a iriend of my own, allowed me to take notes 
of these experiments for publication, and as far as I know, I was 
the first person not connected with Dr. Morton's office, except 
Dr. Gould, who saw these experiments. 

As to Dr. Jackson's knowledge of the cases at the hospital, 
which are also detailed in my paper, Dr. Jackson did not come 
there till January 2, of the year after they occurred. 

2. When this paper was to be printed, a new element was to be 
introduced into it, at the request of Dr. Morton ; the question of 
patent, a delicate subject already mooted by the interested parties, 
and about which it was obviously proper that Dr. Jackson, who 
w\as interested in it, should be consulted. Though he might not 
care who prosecuted or announced the physiological experiments, 
the matter of patent was plainly a different question. 

I therefore sought an interview with Dr. Jackson, at his house, 
several times. Failing to find him, I left for hin» a verbal request 
that he would be present at a final conference at the house of Dr. 
Gould, where the paper was to be finally considered and adjusted 
before being printed ; especially the few closing paragraphs, then 
for the first time appended to it, and relating to the question of 
patent. 

During this conxcrence, the door was flung open, and Dr. Jack- 
son entered, declaiming vociferously. He was quietly asked what 
might be the occasion of his excitement : and was requested to 
read the paper then upon the table, and under discussion, and to 
see whether he did or did not approve it. Dr. Jackson examined 
the paper, and finding it to be of a strictly physiological character, 
touching very lightly the questions of patent and of discovery, 
he changed his tone, ceased to object, requested one or more al- 
terations of the part bearing upon these latter questions, especially 



119 

the suppression of a paper relating to the electric telegraph, a7id 
assented to the publication of the paper. 

This took place at the house of Dr. Gould, in Tremont street, 
on Sunday evening, three days before the publication referred to, 
and in the presence of Dr. Gould, Mr. Eddy, and Dr. Morton. 
Dr. Jackson assented to the publication of the paper as it then 
stood, and the conference was amicably terminated. 

This statement, together with the accompanying letters of Dr. 
Gould and Mr. Eddy, stating their recollection of the facts, may 
be compared with the above extract from Dr. .Jackson's remon- 
strance. 

I have the honor to be, very resDectfully, your obedient servant, 

HENRY J. BIGELOW. 

Dr. Gould's letter referred to in the above : 

Boston, July 14, 1852. 
Dr. H. J. BiGELov/ : 

Dear Sir. : In answer to your inquiry respecting my recollec- 
tion of a certain interview at my house between yourself and Dr. 
C. T. Jackson, and of the impression I received at the time, I 
w^ould reply that I distinctly recollect the interview alluded to. 
The article you were about to publish was submitted to Dr. Jack- 
son, and the latter part, at least, where alone any objectionable 
expressions were supposed to lie, was read by him, after which I 
received no other impressions than that he found nothing to ob- 
ject to. One passage was excluded, which it w^as thought might 
have some bearing on the question of discovery, and I think at 
his suggestion. 

Yours truly, 

AUGUSTUS A, GOULD. 

Mr. Eddy's letter referred to in Dr. Bigelow's letter : 

Boston, July 12, 1852. 
Dr. H. J. BiGELow : 

Dear Sir : In reply to your request to me to state what I 
recollect in relation to a conference you had with Dr. C. T. 
Jackson one Sunday evening at the house of Dr. A. A. Gould, 
and on the subject of a paper you was preparing for publication 
in the Boston Medical Journal, which paper was subsequently, 
within a few days after, published, and treated of the recent dis- 
covery of the application of ether to annul pain in surgical ope- 
rations, I would remark that I was present at such interview, 
that the article you had proposed w^as exhibited to Dr. Jackson, 
who carefully examined it, and after suggesting, or there having 
been suggested, some trifling changes in it, he expressed his entire 



120 

satisfaction with it, and willingness that it should be published. 
I afterwards read the article as it appeaj-ed in the Medical Jour- 
nal, and so far as my recollection serves me, I perceived nothing- 
in it differing from what it was decided to be satisfactory to Dr, 
Jackson on the said evening. 

Yours respectfully, 

R. H. EDDY. 

Dr. Jackson, in his letter to Baron Von Humboldt, says : 

" I at once appealed to the public, destroyed the bond givea 
me by Mr. Morton, and made the use of ether in surgical opera- 
tions free to all mankind.'^ 

The transaction of destroying the bond is somew^hat ludicrous. 

On the morning of the 26th May, 1847, more than five months 
after the patent had been taken out, after it had for some time 
become unavailable, and Dr. Morton had lost a good deal of 
money by it, Dr. Gay called at Dr. Morton's office, with a young 
gentleman in his company, and somewhat dramatically cancelled 
the bond. This was the bond that secured to Dr. Jackson ten 
per cent, on the net profits of the American patent. On the 
same day, the anniversary of the Massachusetts Medical Society 
took place, and at the dinner, in the afternoon. Dr. Jackson made 
a speech, in which he claimed to have been entirely disinterested 
in his connection with the discovery, and said he had destroyed 
the bond. He did not say that he had destroyed it that morning,, 
just in season for the speech ; but we are permitted to infer that 
it was destroyed at a time when it had some value. 

The inconsistency between these late claims for disinterested- 
ness on the part of Dr. Jackson, and his unremitted efforts to ob- 
tain the utmost possible pecuniary advantage from the discovery, 
so long as there was any chance of its being profitable, is appa- 
rent to all. 

So long as the discovery was under test, and its result was un- 
certain. Dr. Jackson is unseen and unheard. When it became 
evident, from the two experiments at the hospital, that the dis- 
covery was of value, at the close of October, Dr. Jackson first 
appears, and then only for the purpose of claiming compensation 
of Dr. Morton for professional advice. He accepts five hundred 
dollars. His friend obtains for him ten per cent, of the net profits 
of the American patent. He next refuses to sign the European 
papers without receiving ten per cent, on the foreign patents. 
From this he rises to twenty per cent., and on the 28th of Janu- 
ary he claims "twenty-five per cent., both at home and abroad, 
as the least that in justice " can be offered him ; and his counsel, 
of course with his sanction, speaks of the patent as one which, "if 
sustained, promises to give to all parties large sums of money for 
their united co-operation." He opens negotiations with Dr. Mor- 



121 

iton, through Mr. Hayes, for obtaining a joint patent in France, by 
the instrumentality of M. de Eeaumont, whose letters to Dr. 
Jackson on this point were shown to Dr. Morton. After all hope 
of pecuniary benefit from the patent is at an end, he cancels the 
bond, and, with a strange forgetfulness of all his previous conduct, 
comes out in the character of one who disdains pecuniary com- 
pensation. Not only so, but he seems determined that Dr. Mor- 
ton shall receive no compensation. On the 20th November, 1847, 
the physicians and surgeons of the hospital (with one exception) 
prepared a memorial to Congress, setting forth the importance of 
this discovery, and praying the government to make a payment 
"to those persons who shall be found, on investigation, to merit 
compensation," on condition that the patent be given up. Know- 
ing that this would result in an official inquiry into the discovery, 
Dr. Morton promoted it to the utmost of his power. Dr. Jack- 
son, on the other hand, remonstrated against it, on the professed 
ground that he would submit his claims to no tribunal, and that^ 
as the sole discoverer, he wished no reward beyond the grati- 
tude of mankind. 

It is well known that an effort was made in London, by sub- 
scription, for a donation to the discoverer of the effects of ether. 
Ey letters to gentlemen in this country from friends in London, 
we are informed that a sum, estimated at £10,000, was considered 
as secured. But the controversy and doubt created by Dr. Jack- 
son's communications to the French Academy caused it to be 
abandoned. 

Dr. Jackson speaks of Dr. Morton in terms of great bitterness. 
He assails his private character, declaring that it is infamous, and 
that in knowledge and intellect he is an ignoramus and an imbe- 
cile, not only not possessed of science, but mentally incapable of 
acquiring it ; and that, while administering his anesthetic vapor 
to the patients at the hospital, he was offensive to the faculty by 
reason of ignorance and quackery. Much of his letter to Baron 
Yon Humboldt, which he has filed before your committee as his 
answer, for this reason would not be suffered to remain on the 
files of the court of chancery, but would be stricken out for scan- 
dal and impertinenoe. Your committee utterly refused, as stated 
above, to receive evidence of general character, or ol particular 
accusation or defence for or against either of the parties, not 
relevant to the issue. But, as the charges advanced by Dr. Jack- 
son against Dr. Morton, in the letter above, must remain on the 
files of the House and be printed with the proceedings of the com- 
mittee, they deem it but just to say that these charges are not 
only not supported by, but are utterly inconsistent with, the cur- 
rent proofs in this case. And they think it proper to refer to the 
letters, herewith published, of Drs. Warren, Hayward, Bigelow, 
and Townsend, surgeons of the Massachusetts? General Hospital, 
for conclusive evidence of his capability to conduct the experi- 



122 

ments ; to the following testimonial by the trustees of that insti- 
tution, for the estimation in v/hich they and the public generally 
held his services ; to the certificates and diploma for medical 
quahficatior^ on pages 19, 20, and to the letters- from two of the 
Ex-Governors of his State and the I\iayor of the city in which he 
resides, for the estimation in which he is held at home : 

"Boston, May 12, 1848. 

" Dear Sir : At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital, a few weeks since, it was infor- 
mally suggested that a limited subscription of one thousand dollars 
shall be raised for your benefit, in acknowledgment of your ser- 
vices in the late ether discovery ; no one to be asked to subscribe 
more than ten dollars. We consented to act as a committee to 
receive and apply the proceeds of this subscription. The pro- 
posed sum having been obtained, we have novr the pleasure of 
transmitting it to you. We also enclose the subscription book in 
a casket which accompanies this note. Among its signatures you 
will find the names of not a few of those most distinguished among 
us for vv^orth and intelligence : and it may f)e remarked, that it is 
signed by every member of the Board of Trustees. 

" You wdll, w^e are sure, highly value this first testimonial, 
slight as it is, of the gratitude of your fellow-citizens. That you 
may hereafter receive an adequate national reward is the sincere 
wish of your obedient servants, 

" SAMUEL FROTHINGHAM, 
" THOMAS B. CURTIS. 

" To Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton." 

The box accompanying this note had upon it the following in- 
scription : in front, " Testimonial in honor of the Ether Discovery 
of Sept. 30, 1846 ; " and on the lid, " This box, containing one 
thousand dollars, is presented to William Thomas Green Morton 
by the members of the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts 
General Hospital and other citizens of Boston, May 8, 1848." 



Letter from Governor Briggs. 

" Council Chamber, Boston, Jan. 12, 1849. 
''Dear Corv/in : Allow" me to introduce to your acquaintance 
Dr. Morton, of this city, whose name the world knows as the dis- 
coverer of the application of ether to alleviate pain. An appli* 
cation to Congress for some compensation for the discovery is to 
be made. May I ask you, for the doctor, who thus far, though 



123 

he has relieved thousands of others from suffering, has had nothing 
but suffering himself as his reward, to look at bis case, and if you 
iind it has merits, give it your support. 

"Sincerely and truly yours, 

"GEO. N. BRIGGS. 
"Hon. Thos. Corwin." 



Letter from Governor Morton. 

"Boston, January 12, 1849. 
"Dear Sir : I am happy to have the opportunity of present- 
ing to your acquaintance Dr. W. T. G. Morton, of this city. 
Dr. M., who by reputation is doubtless known to you, has the 
distinction to have his name identified with one of the most im- 
portant discoveries of modern times — the application of ether as 
an agent for producing insensibility to pain in surgical operations. 
His object, as I understand, m visiting Washington at this time is 
to endeavor to procure from Congress some recognition of the 
value of his discovery. I beg leave to recommend him to your 
kind attention. 

"' I am, very respectfully, your friend and servant, 

MARCUS MORTON. 
^^To Hon. Thos. H. Benton." 



Letter from Mayor Bigelow. 

" Boston, December 9, 1848. 

" Sir : I avail myself of the honor which I had of makifig 
your acquaintance ]ast season, during your visit to Boston, to in- 
troduce to you my friend. Dr. Morton, the discoverer of the effect 
of ether in producing insensibility to pain, a discovery which has 
placed him in the front rank of the benefactors of the human 
race. He visits Washington in the hope of obtaining some re- 
cognition on the part of Congress of the value of his discovery, 
and has already secured the favorable consideration of some of 
the members. Your assistance in the matter would be in keeping 
with your well known and enlightened philanthropy, and would 
be gratefully appreciated. 

*"' I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient 
servant, 

"JOHN P. BIGELOW. 

^'Hon. Isaac E. Holmes." 



124 

The claim in behalf of Dr. Wells rests on his experiments with 
nitrous oxide, referred to by your committee in the -early part of 
their report. He had the merit of attempting to carry out prac- 
tically the idea suggested by Sir Humphrey Davy, of rendering, 
by its influence, a patient insensible to pain in a surgical opera- 
tion. He has also undoubtedly the merit of having contributed 
something in directing the mind of Dr. Morton to the subject, and 
thus aided in conferring this great boon upon mankind. Origin- 
ally he did not claim for himself the honor of the discovery, but 
merely of the attempt, which he admitted to have been fruitless. 

The letter of Dr. Morton announcing his discovery and the 
reply of Dr. Wells, together with the letter of R. H. Eddy, dated 
February 17, 1847, prove this. They are as follows : 

" Boston, October 19, 1846. 

" Friend Wells — Dear Sir : T write to inform you that I 
have discovered a preparation, by inhaling which, a person is 
thrown into a sound sleep. The time required to produce sleep 
is only a few moments, and the time in which persons remain 
asleep can be regulated at pleasure. While in this state the se- 
verest surgical or dental operations may be performed, the pa- 
tient not experiencing the slightest pain. I have perfected it, 
and am now about sending out agents to dispose of the right to use 
it. I will dispose of a right to an individual to use it in his own 
practice alone, or for a town, county, or State. My object in 
writing to you is to know if you would not like to visit New 
York and other cities, and dispose of rights upon shares. I have 
used the compound in more than one hundred aad sixty cases in 
extracting teeth, and I have been invited to administer to patients 
in the Massachusetts General Hospital, and have succeeded in. 
every case. 

" The Professors, Warren and Hay ward, have given me written 
certificates to this effect. I have administered it at the hospital 
in the presence of the students and physicians — the room for op- 
erations being as full as possible. For further particulars I will 
refer you to extracts from the daily journals of this city, w^hich I 
forv/ard to you. 

" Respectfully yours, 

"WM. T.G.MORTON." 

"Hahtford, Connecticut, October 20, 1846. 
" Dr. Morton — Dear Sir : Your letter dated yesterday, is; 
just received, and I hasten to answer it, for fear you will adopt a 
method in disposing of your rights, which will defeat your object- 
Before you make any arrangements whatever, I wish to see you. 
I think I will be in Boston the first of next week — probably Mon- 



125 

day night. If the operation of administering the gas is not at- 
tended with too much trouble, and will produce the effect you 
state, it will, undoubtedly, be a fortune to you, provided it is 
rightly managed. 

" Yours, in haste, 

''H.WELLS." 



" BosTOi^, February 17, 1847. 
" R. H. Dana, Esq. — Bear Sir : In reply to your note of this 
morning, I have to state that about the time I was .engaged in 
preparing the papers for the procurai of the patent, in the United 
States, on the discovery of Dr. Morton, for preventing pain in 
surgical operations, by the inhalation of the vapor of sulphuric 
ether, I was requested by Dr. Morton to call at his .oifice to have 
an interview with the late Dr. Horace Weils, who was then on a 
visit to this city, and who. Dr. Mor.ton thought, might be able to 
render him valuable advice and assistance in regard to the mode 
of disposing of privileges to use the discovery. Accordingly I 
liad an interview w^ith Dr. Wells. During such meeting w^e con- 
versed freely on the discovery and in relation to the experiments 
Dr. Wells had beenv/itness to in the office of Dr. Morton. The 
details of our conversation I do not recollect sufficiently to at- 
tempt to relate them, but the whole of it, and the manner of Dr. 
Wells at the time, led me, in no respect, to any suspicion that he 
(Dr. Wells) had ever before been aware of the then discovered 
effect of ether in annulling pain during a surgical operation. Dr. 
Wells doubted the ability of Dr. Morton to procure a patent, not 
on the ground that he (Dr. Morton) was not the first and original 
discoverer, but that he (Dr. Wells) believed the discovery was 
not a legal subject for a patent. He advised him, however, to 
make application for one, and to dispose of as many licenses as 
he could while such application might be pending ; in fact, to 
make as much money out of the discovery as he could while the 
excitement in regard to it might last. I must confess that when, 
some time afterwards, I heard of the pretensions of Dr. Wells to 
be considered the discoverer of the aforementioned effect of ether, 
I was struck with great surprise, for his whole conversation with 
me at the time of our interview, led me to the belief that he fully 
and entirely recognized the discovery to have been made by Dr. 
Morton, or at least partly by him and partly by Dr. C. T. Jack- 
son, as I then supposed. 

" Respectfully yours, 

" R. PL EDDY.*' 



126 

The evidence presented with Dr. Wells' claim, shows that den- 
tal operations were in several instances performed without pain by 
Dr. Wells, under the influence of nitrous oxide, which had been 
before known in some cases to produce a total or partial asphyxia. 
It appears also that the vapor of sulphuric ether was thought of, 
discussed, and finally rejected by him — while the total abandon- 
ment of the use of nitrous oxide, and indeed of every other agent, 
shows that Dr. Wells' experiments were, on the whole, unsuccess- 
ful. He engaged in the search and failed to find the object of his 
pursuit. He attempted and endeavored assiduously to carry out 
the idea to practical results, but was not successful. There was 
great merit in the effort, but it proved a failure. 

Dr. Wells, therefore, in the opinion of your committee, is not 
entitled to the honor of the discovery. He stopped half way in 
the pursuit. He had the great idea of producing insensibility to 
pain, but he did not verify it by successful experiments. He mis- 
took the means, and he unfortunately rejected the true anesthetic 
agent as dangerous to life, and therefore did not make the discov- 
ery and give it to mankind. He did what Dr. Beddoes, Sir Hum- 
phrey Davy, and Dr. Townsend had done about the close of the 
last century, but nothing more. 
*Thisar- But he had the signal merit of reviving the investigation, and, 
bitration probably, of hastening the discovery. If an idea connected with 
posed ^ by ^^^ subject lay dormant in the mind of any one, his attempt was 
Morton well calculated to awaken it into life. When in the fall of 1844 
and ac- he made his public attempt, in Boston, to produce aneesthesia 
Jackson ^ during a dental operalion, by the use of nitrous oxide, if Dr. Jack- 
andnotre-son had indeed made and perfected this discovery, and felt an 
fused _ by abiding confidence in its truth, who can doubt that he would have 

Si^wili?^ availed himself of that occasion, or have been reminded by it, to 
had had the i ^ i • t^ r i t i i m • • 

effect to make lor mmself another, at an early day, of publicly exnibitmg 

keep Mor- and testing the true anaesthetic agent ? 

sendine °^ The question of discovery, which your committee has thus en- 
publica- deavored to examine, was every way proper to be tried and set- 
tions tied by intelligent men, as a jury of the vicinage, which was 

abroad,and ppQpQgg J by Dr. Morton and refused by Dr. Jackson.* But 
Jackson an it was finally tried by a most appropriate tribunal — the Trus- 
opportuni- tees of the Massachusetts General Hospital, at which the first 
ty to have p^]^|-p exhibition of this pain-destroyinp; power was made and 
claimed the "^"^^^1'^ its effects were first witnessed by an admirmg audience, 
discoverer The question of discovery was tried before these men — trustees 
all over ^f ^ scientific corporation, to whom Dr. Jackson was well known 
(Se0^^'Ed- ^^ ^ distinguished member of the medical faculty, and to whom 
onuTid War- Dr. Mortou, prior to the discovery, and the contest to which it 
ren's Pam-i^^^ ^vas kuown Only as a young man of energy and enterprise. 
Edition p. -^^^ ^^i^ Board, composed of men whose names would do honor 
40, 41.)' * to any scientific institution, presently after the discovery, near the 



12T 

time and at the place where it occurred, gave, by a unanimous 
voice, its honor to Dr. Morton. One year after they reviewed 
their decision, at the reqiiest of Dr. Jackson, and unanimously 
confirmed it. In this connection your committee deem it proper 
to introduce a letter from the honorable Secretary of State : 

Washington, D,€cember 20, 1851. 

"Dr. W. T. G. MoPvTON — Bear Sh' : In reply to your letter of 
the 17th inst., I would say that, having been called on, on a pre- 
vious occasion, to examine the question of the discovery of the 
application of ether in surgical operations, I then formed the 
opinion which I have since seen no reason to change, that the merit 
of that great discovery belonged to you, and I had supposed that 
the reports of the Trustees of the Hospital and of the Committee 
of the House of Representatives of the United States, were conclu- 
sive on this point. 

"The gentlemen connected with the hospital are well known to 
me as of the highest character, and they possessed at the time of 
the investigation, every facility for ascertaining all the facts in 
the case. 

"The Committee of the House were, I believe, unanimous in 
awarding to you the merit of having made the first practical ap- 
plication of ether, and a majority by their report, awarded to 
you the entire credit of the discovery. 

"Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

"'DANIEL WEBSTER." 

Before this tribunal, neither time, place, nor circumstance, per- 
mitted bold and confident assertion to be mistaken for truth. 
With this award we think Dr. Jackson, Dr. Wells, and the scien- 
tific world should have been satisfied. It is, in the opinion of 
your committee, entitled to great weight. It was the first, and 
ought to have been the only contest. Our enlightened system of 
jurisprudence forbids, except under extraordinary circumstances,. 
a second trial of q^'^stions of fad. It forbids it, as a guard 
against the danger incident to repeated investigations, that truth 
will be overborne by artfully manufactured evidence. 

Therefore, even if the evidence before your committee rendered 
the question of fact doubtful, which it does not, they would hesi- 
tate long before they would overrule the decision of the Trustees 
of the Massachusetts General Hospital. 

It is also a subject of much gratification to this committee, to 
be able to concur in the opinion of the former committee of the 
House, from whose very able report they have extracted so large- 
ly. They did not, however, feel themselves bound by either the 
one or the other, but gave the subject for themselves a full and 
careful consideration. But they are the more satisfied with the 
conclusions to which they have come, because of their concur- 
rence with such high and unexceptionable authorities. 



w^ 



128 

Dr. Jackson appeals to the Academy of Arts and Sciences at 
Paris, and claims that that learned body has decided the question 
of discovery in his favor, by awarding him the " Monthyon prize 
for the greatest medical discovery," and that their decision ought 
to be taken as final and conclusive. 

Your committee, far obvious reasons, would at once bow to 
the decision of that very learned society, (the centre and soul 
of scientific knowledge in Europe,) as to the fact of discovery, 
and that the honor of tho discovery belonged to America, and 
also as to its merit and value among the discoveries of the age. 
Eut on the question. Who was the discoverer ? their decision, if 
they made one, is entitled to much less weight. They are remote 
from the scene — had no means at an early day of possessing them- 
selves of the evidence — and v/e have already seen how the minds 
of the members of the Academy were pre-Qccupied by Dr. Jack- 
son's sealed letter of November 13, 1846, and his letter of De- 
cember 1, directing the seal of the former letter to be broken. 
The temporary secrecy, with the form and circumstance of the 
disclosure, together with his European reputation for science, 
were, in the absence of any conflicting evidence* or claim, well 
calculated to make a first impression in his favor. 

"^^ On the 31st of January la'^t the Institute of France awarded the < Cross 
of the Legion of Honor' to br. Jackson as the discoverer of etherization." — 
Minority Report No. 114, thirtieth Congress, 2^th February , 1849. 

In the Compte Rendus of March 24, 1848, are the following sentences : 

M. Morton announced the sending of documents destined to establish in his 
favor the priority relative to the discovery of the eiFect of the inlialation of the 
vapor of ether. The documents announced are not yet before the Academy. 
The letter of M. Morton was sent to be examined by the commission upon ether 
and chloroform. 

Boston, March 14, 1849. 

Dear Sir : By a letter received from our Paris agent while you were in 
"Washington, we learn that your pamphlets, addressed to the French Academy 
and others, owing to a wrong impression, have not as yet been received. They 
remained at the French custom-house from May 6 to December 16. The duties 
on them have now been paid, and they are in the hands of an agent at Paris 
awaiting your further instructions. Please give us your orders in season for 
transmitting per next steamer from Boston. 

We remain vour obedient servant, 

HARNDEN & CO. 

W. T. G. Morton, M. D. 

Paris, May 10, 1849. — You ask me in regard to the ether quarrel and Dr. 
Jackson. These are the answera : 

1. In the first place, the Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor has not been 
conferred on Dr. J. There are ten degress ; the lowest — that of Chevalier — 
was given to him. It is a very problematic honor ; the manner in which it was 
distributed by Louis Phillippe having made it a distinction to be without it. 
Recently it was offered to M. Richard, one of the mayors of Paris, who refused 
it OB this ground. 

2. The giving the Cross to Dr. Jackson was principally owing to the effortd 
of M. Eli de Beaumont, the distinguished geologist, and was just as much for 
•what Dr. Jackson may have done as a geologist as for anything he may have 
had to do with ether. — Letter of Mr. Stunner, brother of Senator Sumner, to 
Dr. George Hayward, of Boston. 

The gold medal waa given upon the same consideration. 



129 

But the Academy of Arts and Sciences at Paris did not, as it 
appears, award to Dr. Jackson the honor of the discovery, either 
directly or indirectly, by awarding him '^ the Mouthy on prize for 
the greatest medi'Cal discovery.'' Your committee have inspected 
the official awardments, exhibited by the parties, and find that 
the award to Dr. Jackson was " one of the prizes of medicine 
and surgery of the Monthyon foundation." And M. Alexander 
Vattemare, in his letter to Dr. Morton, gives an extract from the 
formal decision made by that learned body, " between these two 
celebrated contestants," as follows : 

" Mr. Jackson and Mr. Morton were necessary to each other. 
Without the earnestness, the preconceived idea, the courage, not 
to say the audacity of the latter, the fact observed by Mr. Jack- 
son might have long remained unapplied ; and but for the faet ob- 
served by Mr. Jackson, the idea of Mr. Morton might perhaps 
have been sterile and ineffectual ;" "consequently, (he proceeds,) 
there has been aw^arded a prize of two thousand five hundred 
francs to Mr. Jackson for his observations and experiments upon 
the anaesthetic effects of sulphuric ether, and another of two 
thousand five hundred francs likewise to Mr. Morton, " for hav- 
ing introduced the method in surgical practice after the indications 
of Mr. Jackson." 

Dr. Morton has, within a few days, received the expression of 
the Academy in the more acceptable form of their largest gold' 
medal. The prize awarded to him, as above stated, being of an 
amount not absorbed by the medal, has been appropriately used 
in enclosing it in a suitable golden frame. On the one side of the 
medal, in addition to the name of the institute, is a medallion 
head of the Goddess of Liberty. On the reverse, surrounded by 
a wreath of laurel, is engraved — 

" Academic des Sciences. Prix Monthyon — Medicine et Chi- 
rurgie— Concours de 1847 et 1848. Wm.'T. G. Morton, 1850." 

Upon a full examination of the whole case so far as time and 
means were afforded to your committee, they have come to the 
conclusion — 

1st. That Dr. Horace Wells did not make any discovery of the 
ansesthetic properties of the vapor of sulphuric ether, which he 
himself considered reliable, and w^hich he thought proper to give 
to the world. That his experiments were confined to nitrous 
oxide, but did not show it to be an efficient and reliable anees- 
thetic agent, proper to be used in surgical operations and in ob- 
>stetrical cases. 

For the rest your committee have come to the same conclusions 
that were arrived at by the Trustees of the Massachusetts Gene- 
9 



130 

ral Hospital at their meeting in January, 1848, and reconsidered 
and confirmed in 1849, and adopted by the former committee of 
the House, viz : 

2d. That Dr. Jackson does not appear at any time to have 
made any discovery in regard to ether, which v:as not in print 
in Great Britain some years before. 

3d. That Dr. Morton, in 1846, discovered the facts, before un- 
known, that ether would prevent the pain of surgical operations ; 
and that it might be given in sufficient quantity to effect this 
purpose, without danger to life. He first established these facts 
by numerous operations on teeth, and afterivards induced the sur- 
geons of the hospital to demonstrate its general applicability and 
importance in capital operations. 

4th. That Dr. Jackson appears to have had the belief that a 
power in ether, to prevent pain in dental operations, would be 
discovered. He advised various persons to attempt the discovery ; 
but neither they nor he took any measures to that e7id, and the 
world remained in entire ignorance of both the power and safety 
of ether, until Dr. Morton made his experiments. 

5th. That the whole agency of Dr. Jackson in the matter ap- 
pears to consist only in his having made certain suggestions, 
which aided Dr. Morton to make the discovery — a aiscovery 
which had for some time been the object of his labors and re- 
searches. 

Though it was but •- a single step, and that a short one,'^ from 
the daily walks of science to this great discovery, yet the scien- 
tific world admits that the step was never taken prior to the 30th 
of September, 1846 : and the discovery, when in fact made, was 
instantly appreciated and hailed by the surgical profession mth 
the most exalted enthusiasm, almost with shouts of rapture. In 
a letter written fresh on the verification of the discovery in 
England, the grave and sedate Listen says : 



" Hurrah ! 

" Rejoice I Mesmerism, and its professors have met with a 
'heavy blow, and great discouragement.' An American dentist 
has used ether (inhalation of it) to destroy sensation in his ope- 
rations, and the plan has succeeded in the hands oi Warren, Hay- 
ward, and others, in Boston. Yesterday I amputated a thigh, 
and removed, by revulsion, both sides of the great toe nail, with- 
out the patient's being aware of what was doing, so far as regards 
pain. The amputation-man heard, he says, what we said, and 
was conscious, but felt neither the pain oi the incisions, nor that 
of tying the vessels. In short, he had no sensation of pain in the 
operating theatre. I mean to use it to-day, in a case of stone. 
In six months no operation will be performed without this pre- 



131 

vious pfeparation.* It must be carefully set about. Tbe ether 
must be washed, and purified of its sulphurous acid and alcohol. 
Shall I desire Squire, a most capital and ingenious chemist, to 
send you a tool for the purpose? It is only the bottom of Nooth's 
apparatus, with a sort of funnel above, with bits of sponge, and, 
at the other hole, a flexible tube. Rejoice ! 

^^ Thine always, R. L." 

Mr. Velpeaa, one of the most eminent surgeons of Paris, in 
his treatise on medical operations in 1839, says : 

" To avoid pain in surgical operations is a chimera which it is 
not allowable to pursue at the present day. The cutting instru- 
men t and pain, in operative medicine, are two words w^hich never 
present themselves singly to the mind of the patient, and of which 
we must necessarily admit the association." 

But in a communication to the Academy of Arts and Sciences 
at Paris, on the 27th of January, 1847, he speaks thus : 

^'I desire that the question of priority be immediately laid 
aside ; it does not appear, in effect, to have any foundation. To 
say that some one has stupefied or put to sleep some dogs or hens., 
is nothing to the purpose ; for this action of ether has been known 
fifteen, Uventy, thirty years and more. The Dictionaries of 
Medicine, Treatises on Medical Jurisprudence — that of M. Orfila, 
and the toxology of the last author in particular — indicate it 
formally. That which is new, is the proposition to render the 
patient totally insensible to pain, under a surgical operation, by 
means of inspiration of ether." 

And the venerable and sage Dr. Warren, in his work on ether- 
ization, speaks in the following impressive and exalted strain : 

" A new era has opened to the operating surgeon ! His visi- 
tations on the most delicate parts are performed, not only with- 
out the agonizing screams he has been accustomed to hear, but 
sometimes with a state of perfect insensibility, and occasionally 
even with the expression of pleasure on the part of the patient. 
Who could have imagined that drawing the knife over the deli- 
€ate skin of the face might produce a sensation of unmixed de- 
light ! that the turning and twisting of instruments in the most 
sensitive bladder might be accompanied by a beautiful dream I 
that the contorting of anchylosed joints should co-exist with a 
celestial vision ! If Ambrose Pare, and Louis, and Dessault, 

* Of course, this is not to be considered as Mr. Listen's deliberate opinion ; 
but just the first flash of enthusiasm, at once natural and becoming, in the cir- 
cumstances. 



-.&• 



132 

and Chesse^den, and Hunter, and Cooper, could see what our 
eyes daily witness, how would they long to come among us and 
perform their exploits once more ! And with w^hat fresh vigor 
does the living surgeon, who is ready to resign the scalpel, grasp 
it, and wish again to go through his career under the new 
auspices!" 

The question of who was the discoverer being thus, as the 
committee trust, placed beyond dispute, they turn their attention 
next to the value of the discovery. 

It supplies a desideratum long sought by surgeons for the relief 
of the excruciating pain they were necessarily obliged to inflict 
in the practice of their profession. They had, as heretofore 
stated, vainly attempted this relief by the use of opiates, extract 
of hemp, mesmerism, &c. ; but none fulfilled the desired purpose ; 
and their suggestion of the necessity to life or limb of an opera- 
tion, was apparently ever doomed to be accompanied w^ith the, 
to many, all absorbing feeling of terror of the pain which there 
was no known means of avoiding. Dread of pain has not un- 
frequently deterred from submission to operations necessary to 
the preservation of life. In other cases, where this dread w^as 
overcome and the operation performed, the severity of the suf- 
fering and the shock to the system have been large elements in 
the production of a fatal result. Since the introduction of ether- 
ization, both the patient and surgeon approach the operation with 
feelings entirely different from those formerly entertained under 
similar circumstances. The latter is relieved from the necessity 
of witnessing thos'e manifestations of pain w^hach his instruments 
formerly produced, and to ever become indifferent to which he 
must be more or less than human ; while the foi^mer looks only 
to the end to be attained — the restoration to health — there being 
no intermediate pain to excite his dread and fix his exclusive 
attention. For screaming, and struggles, and intense suffering 
under the surgeon's knife, etherization has substituted more or 
less complete exemption from pain, associated in some with the 
quietude, mental and corporeal, of deep sleep ; in others, with. 
pleasing dreams, imaginary busy scenes, and sweet music ; and 
in others, with a perfect consciousness of surrounding objects and 
events, making the patient, perhaps, not among the least calm or 
most anxious spectators of the operation. 

And its benefits are by no means confined to surgical patients 
and surgical practice. The obstetrician finds it in the means of 
alleviating that distress with which woman has ever heretofore 
been cursed, w^hen in the act of becoming a mother. And who 
would not hail with delight any means of ministering comfort to 
her who bears the holy name of mother ? To the physician it 
affords one of the most useful, as it is one of his most prompt 
remedies. He, too, is often compelled to he the spectator of 



133 

severe pain and distress, for the alleviation of which his before 
known remedies were powerless. He, before, had no reliable 
means of relieving the spasms of tetanus ; he not unfrequentiy 
failed to procure sleep in delirium tremens^ when the question is 
one of sleep or death; his before palliative remedy (opium) for 
the pain of colic, too often purchased temporary relief at the 
expense of an aggravation of the cause of the disease, and of 
increased difficulties in its cure; and he occasionally witnessed 
the breaking up of the system of a neuralgic patient, more as a 
consequence of the repeated large doses of opium to which he 
was consti ained to resort for the mitigation of his paroxysms, 
during the slow progress of curative remedies, than of the dis- 
ease itself. Eut an enumeration of all, or of any considerable 
number of the cases in which he finds it useful, nay, indispensable, 
is neither required, nor would it be proper in a paper of this 
character. 

It is no answer to this to allege that the discovery is capable 
of injury or mischief. Ignorance of the proper use of anything 
leads to its abuse ; and what is not abused, the use of which 
depends upon human judgment ? Being of indispensable value 
to all, as all are liable to require its use, the committee deem the 
discoverer entitled to reward, as a benefactor of the human race. 
Eut his application rests not solely on that ground. The discov- 
ery is used by the United States government in the army and 
navy, and for that use the government is clearly bound to com- 
pensate him ; especially as they secured to him the use of the 
discovery by letters patent, Dr. Jackson having first assigned his 
claim to Dr. Morton. The committee have thought proper to 
annex the following extracts from the records of the Patent office : 

'' I have therefore, in consideration of one dollar, to me in 
hand paid, the receipt whereof I do hereby acknowledge, assigned, 
set over, and conveyed, and by these presents do assign, set over, 
and convey to the said Morton and his legal representatives, all 
the right, title, and interest whatever which I possessed in the 
said invention or discovery, a specification of which I have this 
da/j- signed and executed in conjunction with him, for the purpose 
of enabling him to procure a patent thereon. 

'' And I do hereby request the Commissioner cf Patents to issue 
the patent to the said Morton in his name, and as my assignee or 
legal representative, to the extent of all my right, title, and in- 
terest whatever in the said invention or discovery. 

'^ In testimony whereof, 1 have hereto set my signature and 
affixed my seal, this twenty-seventh day of October, one thousand 
eight hundred and forty-six. 

'' CHARLES T. JACKSON. 

"Witness: R. H. Eddv.'^ 



134 

" United States Patent Office, 
*' Received this 10th day of November, 1846, and recorded in- 
liber F 1, page 118, of Transfers of Patent Rights. 

*'In testimony whereof, I have caused the seal, of the Patent 
Office to be hereunto affixed. 

"EDMUND BURKE, 

^^Commissioner oj PaterUs,'' 



No. 4,848. 

'The United States of America. 

To all to whom these letters patent shall come : 

"These are therefore to grant, according to law, the said Wm, 
T. G. Morton, his heirs, administrators, or assigns, for the term 
of fourteen years from the 12th day of November, 1846, the full 
and exclusive right and liberty of making, constructing, using, 
and vending to others to be used, the said improvement." 

Numerous instances have occurred, to which your committee 
beg leave to refer, in which compensation in money has been made 
by Congress, as a re^vard for lilie discoveries, of less importance 
to the country and mankind, namely : 

patents purchased. 

Tucker and Judge — For the construction of anchors for the 
Navy, Statutes at Large, vol. 6, page 659, Sl,500. 

Daniel Pettibone— For the use of circular bullet moulds, Statu- 
tes at Large, vol. 6, page 833, $5,000. 

Boyd Reilly — For the use of gas in vapor baths, Statutes at 
Large, vol. 6, page 904, $5,000. 

William H. Bell — for elevating heavy cannon, and for pointing 
the same, Statutes at Large, vol. 5, page 126, $20,000. 

Isaac Babbit — for the right of use of the patent anti-antrition 
metal. Statutes at Large, vol. 5, pages 547 and 686, $2,000. 

Heirs of Robert Fulton — Fur the benefits conferred upon the 
country by his improvements in navigation by steam. Statutes at 
Large, vol. 9, page 660, $76,300. 

Anne M. T. Mix, widow of M. P. Mix — For the purchase of 
Mix's manger stopper, Statutes at Large, vol. 9, page 82, $3,000. 

Doctor Locke — For the free use, by the United States, of his 
invention of the magnetic clock, Statutes at Large, vol. 9, page 
374, $10,000. 

R. S. McCulloh and James C. Boothe — To purchase the right 



135 

to use the improved methods of refining argentiferous gold bul- 
lion, Statutes at Large, vol. 9, page 530, $25,000. 

APPROPRIATIONS FOR EXPERIMENTS TO TEST PATENTS. 

Samuel Colt — Submarine battery, Statutes at Large, vol. o, 
page 584, $15,000. 

Sarah F. Mather — Submarine telescope. Statutes at Large, vol. 
5, page 667, $2,000. 

S. F. B. Morse. — Electro magnetic telegraph, Statutes at Large, 
vol. 5, page 618, $30,000. 

For testing inventions for preventing explosion of steam boilers. 
Statutes at Large, vol. 5, page 793, $5,000 

""^^ Earle — For the preservation of canvass, Statutes at 
Large, vol. 9, page 170, $5,000. 

Uriah Brown — For testing steam fire ships, and shot proof 
steamships. Statutes at Large, vol. 9, page 273, $10,000. 

James Crutchett — For testing solar gas lights and erecting fix- 
tares, Statutes at Large, vol. 9, page 207, $17,500. 

Isherwood — For testing light for lighthouses. Statutes 

at Large, vol. 9, page 323, $6,000. 

Charles G. Page — To test the capacity and usefulness of electro- 
magnetic power, for the purposes of navigation and locomotion. 
Statutes at Large, voL 9, page 375, $20,000. 

Though fally satisfied of the value of the discovery, the com- 
mittee thought it not proper to act upon their own unaided opin- 
ions. The chairman addressed circulars to the different hospitals, 
to medical institutions, to m.any of the most eminent physicians 
and surgeons in the United States, (see appendix,) and to the 
surgeons of the army and navy. The answers to these are very 
numerous; too much so, and too lengthy for publication, but have 
beefi perused, and their contents carefidly noticed by the com- 
mittee. Only two of this mass of letters speak disparagingly of 
the discovery, and one of those does not profess to speak from the 
writer's own observation. The committee annex extracts (see 
appendix*,) from some of these answers, and a few entire letters, 
exhibiting the general opinion of the value of the discovery — its 
value being indisputable, and almost universally acknowledged, 
it was not deemed necessary to multiply extracts in its proof — 
and exhibiting likewise, the use of the discovery in the army and 
navy. 

The committee would likewise call particular attention to the 
following letters from the Surgeon General and Staff, and the 
Chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery and Assistant, ad- 
dressed to Dr. Morton, and which were laid before the committee : 



136 

"Surgeon General's Office 



March 1, 1852. 
"Sir: In compliance with your verbal request to be furnished 
with information in regard to the employment of anaesthetic agents 
in the army of the United States, and also for an expression of 
opinion as to the value and importance of this class of remedial 
agents, I have to state : 

" That sulphuric ether and chloroform were used to some ex- 
tent in the military hospitals established at the theatre of war in 
Mexico, but the use of those articles was not so general as at 
present, for the reason that the apparatus at that time believed to 
he essential to their proper and safe administration, was not adapt- 
ed to service in the held. 

" At the present moment it is believed that no surgical opera- 
tion of importance is performed by the medical officers of the 
army without the aid of some anaesthetic agent. 

"Previous to the discovery of this new application of sulphu- 
ric ether, the annual supply of that medicine was one pound for 
every hundred men. On the revision of the standard supply ta- 
ble, by a board of medical officers, in 1849, the pure washed sul- 
phuric ether was substituted for the ordinary sulphuric ether, and 
the quantity allowed was increased one hundred per cent. At 
the same time another anffisthetic agent, the tincture of chloro- 
form, commonly called chloric ether, was added to the supply ta- 
ble, and is now regularly furnished to the medical officers in such 
quantities as, in connexion with the sulphuric ether, will suffice to 
meet all the demands of the service in this particular. 

" Although the discovery of this new therapeutic effect of sul- 
phuric ether has led to the introduction and employment of other 
anaesthetic agents, this does not in any way militate against the 
merits of the original discovery, which I regard as one of the 
most important and valuable contributions to medical science, and 
to the relief of suffering humanity, which has ever been made ; 
the only discovery to be compared therewith being that of vacci- 
nation, which has rendered the name of Jenner immortal. 

" Through the influence of these remedial agents, the surgeon 
is not only enabled to perform the most extensive and difficult 
operations, uncfisturbed by the cries and struggles of the patient, 
but what is of far greater importance, the patient being rendered 
insensible, escapes that shock to the nervous system, which in 
itself is not unfrequently fatal. For this reason operations can 
now be performed with much more safety than heretofore, and 
that, too, in cases in which the attempt to perform them would 
have been forbidden by the general condition of the patient. 

" To the physician this class of remedial agents promises to be 
of the greatest utility, though their application in the treatment 
of disease has yet to be more fully developed. 

"It will suffice at this time to allude to their employment for 



137 

the relief of sutFering woman in the hour of her greatest trial, 
and at the moment she claims our warmest sympathies. That 
these agents can be safely used in parturition, so as to afford full 
and entire exemption from pain to the mother, and with safety 
both to her and to the child, has been amply demonstrated. 

*• In conclusion, permit me to congratulate you upon the flat- 
tering testimonial you have received from the National Institute 
of France for this discovery, and to express the hope, that inas- 
much as it is impossible for you to derive any pecuniary benefit 
therefrom in ordinary course by letters patent, you may receive 
from your country that acknowledgment of your merit which is 
due to one who has conferred so great a boon upon mankind, 
'' I am, very respectfully, vour obedient servant, 

''TH. LAWSON, 

'^ Surgeon GeneraL 
"W. T, G. Morton, M. D., 
. ''Brotvn's Hotel, Washington, D, C." 

'•Surgeon General's Office, 

"March 10, 1852. 

" Sir : The undersigned take pleasure in adding their testimony 
to the mass of evidence you have already accumulated in regard 
to the value and importance of the discovery of the anaesthetic 
properties ©f sulphuric ether, and the consequent introduction of 
a new class of remedial agents into the practice of medicine and 
surgery. 

'* The more general and important advantages which surgeons 
and physicians, as well as patients, have derived from this great 
discovery, are so fully yet concisely set forth in the communica- 
tion addressed to you a few days since by the Surgeon General, 
as to need no repetition here, and we therefore prefer alluding to 
an application of this class of remedial agents, which, so far as 
we have seen, has not been mentioned by your correspondents. 

'^ We refer to their employment in thei army and navy for the 
detection of feigned diseases. The consummate art ofttimes dis- 
played by malingers who are desirous of procuring their dis- 
charges from the service, or to escape unpleasant duty, is such as 
not unfrequently to baffle the skill of the most experienced medi- 
cal officers. It is not enough in these cases to suspect that dis- 
ease is feigned — humanity requires that the fact of malingering 
be proved, before the kind offices of the physician are refused. 
In many instances the use of anaesthetic agents will afford this 
positive proof, and although we do not recommend or advocate 
their employment for this purpose as a general rule, we never- 
theless believe that in some cases it is the duty of the medical 
officer to resort to them to satisfy his doubts. 

"In illustration of the foregoing remarks, we refer you to the 
enclosed copies of proceedings instituted in this ofhce in January, 



138 

1849, in the case of Charles Lanke, formerly a private of artille- 
ry, who applied for a pension on account of alleged anchylosis of 
the knee-joint, and to whom tke sulphuric ether was administered 
by yourself, in the presence of Dr. Edwards, of Ohio, and sev- 
eral other members of Congress. 

*^ Very respectfully, your obedient servants, 
^' H. L. HEISKELL, 

^'Surgeon U. S. Army. 
" RICHD. H. COOLIDGE, 
^^JissH. Surgeon U. S. Army. 
" W. T. G. Morton, M. D., 

" Brown's Hotel, Washington^ B. C." 

" Surgeon General's Office, 
''January 22, 1849. 

*'Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your 
letter of the 18th instant, by the hands of Charles Lanke, formeily 
a soldier in the army, who has been charged with malingering. 

" In accordance with your desire, 1 caused a careful examina- 
tion to be made by two medical officers of the army, w^hose report 
is herewith enclosed. 

" As the most reliable means of ascertaining the true condition 
of this man's limb, these gentlemen endeavored to place him in a 
state of insensibility, by the inhalation of washed sulphuric ether. 
The cause of their failure in rendering him insensible, is explained 
in their report ; and I may also add, that during the short time I 
was called to be present, I had good reasons to think that the 
man strongly resisted the efforts of the two medical gentlemen to 
rerider him insensible. 

" Lanke has again been here this morning with an interpreter, 
and has had explained to him that whenever he shall oonsent *o 
be rendered insensible, and it is found that his knee joint still re- 
ffiiains immovable, he sImII have the benefit of a certificate to that 
ejffect. 

'* Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 
-' By order : H. L. HEISKELL 

''Surgeon U. S. Army. 

*' Hon. Charles Brown, House of Reps." 

" SuaGEON General's Office, 

January 20, 1849. 
" Sir : In compliance with your JTiStrnctions we have made a 
careful examination of the alleged disability of Charles Lanke, 
formerly a private of Captain Sherman's •ompany of 3d artillery, 
and beg leave to report : 

'* That we can find no mark of severe injury received on his 
knee, no deep cicatrix of the integuments, and no saarification, 



139 

&c., such as would have been made in the oourse of treatment 
for an inflammation of the knee-joint. 

" We can find no eVidenoes of any injury to the boBes, and ex- 
press our doubt whether a simple contusion would have caused 
such a permament stiffness of the joint. 

" As the only means at our disposal to test the question of ma- 
lir^ering, we endeavored to place him under the influence of the 
washed sulphuric ether, in order to create insensibility to our 
manipulations. 

^' This we were unable to do, the patiently evidently resisting 
by holding his breath, &c., and when apparently about to fall 
under its influence, refusing to breath it at all, by pushing the 
assistant from him, when about to add an additional supply of 
ether. 

** We are fully persuaded that the patient did use considerable 
muscular force and an evident eff'ort of will to resist the bending of 
the limb, in the course of the experiment. 

^' As the result of our examination we would respectfully sub- 
mit the following opinion, that we do not think that we should be 
justifie^d m giving a certificate of disability to Charles Lanke ; but 
still there being a bare possibility that injustice may be done the 
man, we are willing to repeat the trial by ether, which is truly 
an " experimentura crucis," whenever the applicant for pension 
shall state his readiness to submit. 

" R. H. COOLIDGE, 

^' Assist. Surgeon U. S. Army. 
" ALEXR. S. WOTHERSPOON, 
^^ Assist. Surgeon U. S. Army. 

"Dr. H. L. Heiskell, Surgeon U. S. Anny.'' 

•• Surgeon General's Office, 

Januai y 26, 1849. 
''Sir : I have the honor to inform you that Charles Lanke, 
havmg expressed his willingness to be rendered insensible by ether, 
that article was this day administered, to him by Dr. Morton, of 
Massachusetts, in the presence of Dr. Edwards, and a number of 
other members of Congress and medioal gentlemen. 

"Having come fully under its influence, the limb was com- 
pletely flexed without force, proving conclusively that the stiflhess 
of the knee-joint was altogether feigned. 

'• From the mingled distress and surprise exhibited by Lanke on 
recovering his consciousness, at seeing his leg bent at a right 
angle with the thigh, it was apparent that the suddeA recovery of 
the iiiotion of his knee-joint was anything eke than welcome. 
" Yery respectfully, your obedient servant, 

" By order : H. L. HEISKELL, 

-' Surgeon U. S. Army. 
" Hon. Charles Brown, House of Reps.'' 



140 

^^ Surgeon General's Office, 

February 27, 1852. 
" Sir : It affords me pleasure to bear testimony to the high value 
of anaesthetic agents, both in the practice of surgery and medicine. 
" I consider it the greatest improvement of the century. It is 
now an indispensible agent in the alleviation of pain during sur- 
gical operations, and in the amelioration of many distressin^g 
symptoms and diseases of daily occurrence. Its many uses are 
only beginning to be appreciated by the medical profession, and it 
is impossible to say what limits may be placed to its employmeiit . 
Too much cannot be said in praise of this class of remedicai 
agents. 

'^ Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

'' A. S. WOTHERSPOON, 
*' Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army. 
'' Dr. W. T. G. Morton." 



" Navy Department, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, 

'' February 26, 1852. 

'' Sir : As the views of this bureau are desired in regard to the 
importance attached to the different anaesthetic agents by the 
medical officers of the navy, it gives me pleasure to express the 
high sense entertained by them of their great utility, not only in 
STii*gical practice, but as powerful agents in many painful affec- 
tions, which have resisted the ordinary remedies. This opinion 
is strengthened by the concurrent testimony of the ablest civil 
practitioners of our own country, with the emphatic endorsement of 
their value, by the best British and continental surgeons. In the 
ab.sence of statistical information, accurately made up, it is some- 
what difficult to estimate the relative value of these etherial pre- 
parations ; but if the recorded opinions of professional men, as 
expressed in the various medical journals of this country and Europe, 
are deemed of any weight, the discovery of etherization as a means 
of avoiding pain in severe surgical operations, may be considered 
the most important, in a philanthropic vievv, which this century 
has produced. 

^^ The observation that exhilarating effects resulted from the 
inhalation of ether is no recent acquisition to medical science ; but 
the novelty and gist of this discovery consists in finding that nerv- 
ous perception is suspends d under the influence of the etherial in- 
halation, and while so suspended, the patient is unconscious of 
pain while under the operation of the knife. 

" In addition to the great benefit derived from its use in alle- 
viating pain, it has a decided effect in diminishing mortality. Its 
advantage in this respect appears to be in saving the system from 
the severe shock and nervous exhaustion which attend most of the 



141 

graver surgical operations, and which of themselves often prove 
fatal. 

" It dispels the fear of pain, which formerly prevented many 
from submitting to an operation, or induce them to defer it until 
too late. 

**It enables the surgeon, also, to operate more coolly and 
effectually, undisturbed by the cries and struggles of the patient, 
which sometimes unnerve the steadiest hand, and render abortive 
the best directed efforts. 

" The medal of the first class, awarded to you by the ' Medical 
Institute ' of Paris, evinces the high estimation entertained in that 
centre of medical science and intelligence, of the services you 
have rendered to humanity. 

"It is earnestly hoped that our Government, with a similar 
appreciation of this great acquisition to medical science, will stamp 
their sense of its importance, by a substantial acknowledgment 
which, while it encourages the philanthropist in his efforts to 
meliorate the condition of his fellow men, will remunerate you in 
€ome measure for the toil and vexation attendant on your struggle 
for success. 

" Respectfully your obedient servant, 

"THO. HARRIS, 
'^ Chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. 

" Mr. Wm. T. G. Morton, M. D., Washington:' 



[Extracts.'\ 

" Navy Department, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, 

''March'll, 1852. 

'*' I would state, however, that in the single capital operation 
in which the etherial inhalation was employed by me, it was at- 
tended with the happiest results, and impressed me with such a 
forcible conviction of its importance, that I deem it indispensa- 
ble, as a general rule, in ail serious surgical cases requiring the 
use of the knife. 

" Its application in general practice is becoming daily and more 
enlarged, as its peculiar influence over the nervous system and 
' perceptive ' powers is developed ; and the physician or surgeon 
who banishes it from his pharmacopseia, is neglecting one of the 
most potent weapons presented for his use, since the great dis- 
covery of Jenner. 

"■ Upon the whole I have no hesitation in expressing the opinion 
that this discovery, when divested of the prejudices attending in 
^ome minds the introduction of all novelties, and when the acci- 
dents inseparable from its abu^e or ignorant application, are 
ascribed to their proper causes, will take its rank among the most 



142 

valuable acquisitions which have ever been made to medical 
science. 

'' With great respect, your obedient servant, 

^•S. R. ADDISON, 
^'Passed Assistant Surgeon U. S, JS'avy, 
"W. T. G. Morton, M. D., Washington Cityr 



Inquiries were also instituted into its effect upon mortality, and 
especially of surgical operations. To be fully satisfactory, in- 
quiries of this character should extend through a lon^ series of 
years, and embrace very many cases, the results of which have 
been carefully observed. The discovery being of recent origm, 
no opportunity for inquiries -and observations to such extent has 
been afforded. The answers to such inquiries, where received in 
specific form, have embraced one class only of operations, viz., 
amputations of thigh, leg and forearm. The statistics thus ac- 
quired, the committee believe to be reliable, as they are derived 
from the surgeons of the army and navy, from a few hospitals, and 
from eminent surgeons in civil practice. The result is appended 
in the following table, accompanying which will be found Prof 
Simpson's European tables. 

Amputations of the thigh, leg, arm, and forearm, communicated 
to the committee with their results. The greater number of those 
in which the patients were not etherized, were performed before 
the discovery of anaesthetic properties of ether and chloroform. 



Net etherized. 



Of wliom died. 



40 



Etherized. Of whom died. 



185 10 



No. yill. — Tahh oj- the Mortality of Amputation of the Thigh, 
Leg, and Arm. 



Reporter. ' Xo. of cases. No. of deaths. Per cent, of deaths. 

. t ' 



Parisian Hospitals — Malgaigne ■ 


48i 


273 


57 in 100 


Glasgow Hospital — Lawrie - ; 


242 


97 


40 in 100 


General Collection- Phillips - 


1369 


487 


35 in 100 


British Hospitals — Simpson - j 


618 1 


183 


29 in 100 


Upon patients in an etherized state 


302 


71 


23 in 100 



143 

Six hundred and sixty-nine cases of anaesthesia in obsterical 
practice are likewise reported in Professor Simpson's work — 
"Anaesthesia in Surgery and Midwifery " — and a tabular statement 
of five hundred and sixteen cases in Dr. Channing's work — 
" Etherization in Childbirth " — the result being highly satisfactory. 

Great Britain, France, and all other enlightened nations, have, 
from time immemorial, rewarded munificently such services to 
humanity. The British Parliament, by two successive statutes, 
bestowed upon Jenner the sums of ten thousand and twenty thou- 
sand pounds for the discovery of vaccination. The world has 
as yet produced but one great improvement in the healing art de- 
serving to be ranked with that of Jenner.* America, by annihi- 
lating pain, has done as much for the benefit of the race, as Eng- 



* Extracts fro'trt the British and Foreiff7i Medico-Chirurgical Review^ for Aijril, 

1852. 

Application.'! of A^'<zsthe$ia to Surgery, Midwifery , and Deiitistry. — Of the 
desirableness of the subjugation or annihilation of pain in surgical operations, 
considered in itself, we cannot, on the whole, for a moment doubt; to disarm 
the operating table of a great portion of its terrors, is indeed a triumph of which 
our age may be justly proud. Not only is the actual pain of an operation thus 
removed, but also, in great part, that indescribable horror which often torments 
the patient for some time previously. Men of the greatest courage in other re- 
spects, and who have faced danger and death in many forms, have yet shrunk 
from the prospect of the slow and cold-blooded torture they had before them 
from the knife of the surgeon. Indeed, howaver man may summon his fortitude 
to meet physical pain, or any other dire misfortune, we must all bow to the laws 
of humanity, and /pt-/ the severity of fate, in spite of the efforts of our moral na- 
ture to rise above it. But when we find that this great relief which anaesthetic 
agents afford, is to be obtained almost without risk, and on the whole with verj^ 
beneficial results otherwise, we should receive this great discovery with gratitude 
and exultation. So complete is the general use of anaesthetic agents, that the 
element of pain as an obstacle or source of danger or of terror in surgery, is 
for ever almost destroyed. Manual and instrumental therapeutics, as a branch 
of materia medica, now proceeds, says M. Bouisson, " in the silence, as it were, 
of vegetative life, and its salutary mutilations are only made now by changes q| 
form without any painful sensation having been experienced by the organism.'* 
True it is, as has been already shown, there are exceptions to the general rule ; 
but they are so rare as not to militate practically against it. 

Besides the applications of anaesthesia to operations, it may be employed in sur- 
gery most usefully to favor the diagnosis of some cases. Professor Miller recom- 
mends its use in the examination of some female diseases, to save the delicacy 
and modesty of the patients. There are some diseases which cannot otherwise 
be diagnosed withoiit pain. For instance, in some diseases of the eye there is 
such intense photophobia with spasmodic contraction of the eyelids on the en- 
trance of light into the eye, that it is very difficult to open the eyelid, so as to 
make a proper examination of the organ itself. In such cases, a moderate de- 
gree of anajsthesia will often overcome the resistance of the orbicularis, and de- 
stroy for a time the sensibility of the retina, so as to allow of the examination 
being made. In many accidents the pain renders it difficult to allow of the 
garments of the patient being removed, and the parts injured being properly 
examined. In burns it is often difficult to remove the scorched clothes, burned 
as it were into the skin. In many painful affections of the vagina, accompanied 
by constriction, it is often hardly possible to use the speculum. Cases of pain- 
ful catheterism may also be adduced, and necessary exploration of the urinary 
caHal and bladder. In such cases, and in others which can easily be imagined, 



144 

land did when she furnished the instrument by which the small- 
pox may be finally exterminated. It would be unworthy our 
greatness, and our destiny as the nation soon to be the most 
powerful on the globe, to undervalue a benefaction to mankind, 
which is the peculiar glory of science, of our age, and of our 
country. 

Your committee therefore recommend, that an appropriation be 



as in affections of children, when the struggles of the patient afford an obstacle, 
and in many instances of feigned disease, as we shall see under our fourth head, 
the services which anaesthesia may render to diagnosis are considerable. * * » 

By overcoming pain, it has caused many operations which used to be as rarely 
performed as possible, to come more in the way of the surgeon : the removal of 
nails, and the operation of the actual cautery, need no longer inspire horror to 
the operator or to the patient." With the view of removing muscular resistance, 
its use has become general in the reduction of dislocations and the operation of 
the taxis. » * * 

The diminution of the shock to the nervous system seems to favor the healing 
of wounds, and altogether inct eases the chances of recovery. The shivering 
and re-active fever which often follow operations are greatly diminished by 
etherization; there is generally more sleep, and more complete feeling of com- 
fort. * * * 

It is not necessary to point out the occasional benefit which may be derived 
from the use of aneesthesia in the taxis, in the reduction of dislocations, and 
setting of fractures. In all this class of surgical operations, cases must be con- 
tinually occurring, proving to the surgeon the immense results which he may 
reap from the new discovery. * » * 

Anaesthesia is now used in private and in public practice, as regularly in 
lithotomy as in other operations. * » » 

Henceforth^ even, the €ocl--pit of a m-an-of-war^ and the hospital after a field 
of lattle, will he disarmed of half their terrors. 

The argument in favor of the employment of ancesthesia \in midwif ery~\ may 
be summed up as follows : 

1st. The removal of the pain is benficial to the mother by preventing the 
nervous excitement and shock which physical pain is apt to excite, and the 
nervous and inflammatory reaction which, in some constructions, is apt to result. 

2d. It renders many operations, requisite in complicated labors, easier of 
performance, and more beneficial to the patient. 

3d. Statistics prove the practice of anesthesia to be beneficial to the mothers, 
and nowise dangerous to the children. * * * 

Dr. Simpson, in 1848, communicated the results obtained in 1519 ca>ses, and, 
in our opinion, established the utility of anaesthesia [in midwifery] upon incon- 
testable grounds. » * « 

Thcrapeiitical Applications of Ancesthesia. — It is now evident that the use of 
anajsthetic agents is capable of an extension beyond the bounds of merely ope- 
rative medicine. It has been transported into medicine itself; and perhaps this 
circumstance may attract the attention of the profession to the advantages which 
may accrue from the use of other remedies in the form of inhalations. When we 
consider the great extent of the pulmonary mucous membrane, and the facility 
with which vapors may be introduced through the respiration into the blood, it 
seems extraordinary that this mode of administering medicines has not been 
more exactly studied. * * * 

Pain exists in a vast number of diseases, where even opium is insufficient to 
afford relief; in such cases a field is opened to the use of anaesthetic agents. 

In several cases of intense facial neuralgia, benefit has been obtained from tiie 
inhalation of chloroform, when all other remedies have failed. In pains of the 
bowels, gastralgia, and in nervous cholics, similar results have followed. Many 
observers have pointed out the benefit derived from doses of chloroform in the 
liquid form, in relieving the pain at the early stages of cholera. * * 



145 

made ior the benefit of Dr. W. T. G. Mortoii, to be paid to him 
in consideration of his discovery of the ancesthetic properties of 
the vapor of sulphuric ether, and his public and successful appli- 
cation of the said pain-destroying agent in surgical operations, 
and of its use in the army and navy of the United States, and 
conditioned that he surrender to the United States his patent for 
the discovery. The majority of the committee, in view of its use 
as above mentioned, and of the incalculable value of the discov- 
ery to the whole world, are of the opinion that one hundred 
thousand dollars would not be an unreasonable appropriation for 
tha^ purpose. They herewith report a bill. [The Committee on 
Naval Affairs, House of Representatives, and the Military and 
Naval Committees of the Senate, fully concur in the recommen- 
dation.— 5'eg p. 147.] 

W. H. BISSELL, M. D , of Illinois, 
JOS. SUTHERLAND, of New York, 
ROBERT RANTOUL, jr., of Massachusetts. 
GRAHAM N. FITCH, M. D., one of the 
Regente of the Smithsonian Institution, late Professor Institute 
and Practice of Medicine in Rush Medical College. 



Office House of Representatives, U. S., 

City of Washington, June 28, 1852. 
1, John W. Forney, Clerk of the House of Representatives of 
the United States of America, do hereby certify, that the accom- 
panying printed document is a true copy of the report agreed upon 
by the Select Committee of the House of Representatives on the 
memorial of Doctor William T. G. Morton, for the discovery of 
etherization, and will be presented to the House of Representa- 
tives when the smd Select Committee shall be called upon to 
report in the regular order of the business of the said House. 

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto affixed my 

r- _ T signature and the seal of the House of Representatives 

*- ^'^ of the United States, this twenty-eighth day of June, 

in the year one thousand eight hundred and iifty-two. 

Attest: JOHN W. FORNEY, 

Clerk of the House of Representatives, U. iS. ■ 



In tetanus many favorable cases have been reported. * * * 
In mental alienation anaesthesia has been a good deal used. * « * 
An83sthetic agents have been applied locally in the waj- of ft-ictions, in nervous 
and rheumatic pains, in paiiifnl opthalmia, and in orchitis. Under the hands of 
«ome it has been found exceedingly successful in relieving pain, and subduing 
inflammation, and in the dressing of ulcers. 

It is very plain to us that Vi'e are only at the beginning of the medicinal use ot 
these agents. 

Applications to Legal Medicities. — Simulated dumbness, deafness, and stam- 
mering, can be detected. 
See page MO. 

10 



146 

Ajyr ACT roR the relief of wm. t. g. morgan. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Sec- 
retary of War and the Secretary of the Navy be, and they are 
hereby authorized and instructed to receive from Wm. T. G, 
Morton his patent right for the use of sulphuric ether in producing 
insensibility to pain during surgical and other operations, which 
is at present in use or may hereafter at any time be introciuced 
into the hospitals of the army and navy, the penitentiary of the 
United States, and board of the national shipping; and.there shall 
be paid to the said Wm. T. G. Morton, the sum of one hundred 
thousand dollars out of any money in the treasury not otherwise 
appropriated, in full compensation for the surrender of all his 
rights under the said patent : Provided, however, That the said 
Wm. T. G. Morton shall surrender ail right, interest, and benefit 
from the above letters patent to the Commissioner of Patents. 



Resolution from the Committee on JVaval Affairs of the Hou^e 
of Representatives. 



RESOLUTION. 

Resolved, That the Committee on Naval Affairs of the House 
of Representatives agree in the propriety of the appropriation for 
Dr. W. T. G. Morton, for the discovery of etherization, recom- 
mended by the select committee of the House of Representatives 
on that subject, and adopt the suggestions of the chairman of the 
said select committee, (hereto annexed,) to offer the same as an 
amendment to the bill making appropriations for the naval service, 
in conformity with the views of the Secretaries of War, Navy, and 
Treasury Departments, as expressed in their correspondence with 
this committee, (see correspondence annexed.) 

FREDERICK P. STANl^ON, of Tennessee. 

THOS. B. FLORENCE, of Pennsylvania, 

ROBT. GOODENOW, of Maine, 

S. W. HARRIS, of Alabama, 

E. CARRINGTON CABELL, of Florida. 



House of Representatives U. S., 

Maydl, 1852. 
Sir : I have the honor to inform you that the select committee 
of the House of Representatives, to whom was referred the memo- 
rial of Dr. William T. G. Morton, asking remuneration from Con- 
gress for the discovery of the anaesthetic properties of sulphuric 
ether, have agreed upon a report, (a copy of which is enclosed,) 
which they are awaiting an opportunity to present to the House. 
You will observe that in this report the committee fully recognise 
the inestimable benefits conferred upon the human race by this 
discovery, and believing that the example of the enlightened 
nations of the old world, in awarding munificently those who have 
rendered important services to humanity, is particularly worthy 
of imitation in the present instance, have determined to report a bill 
appropriating the sum of one hundred thousand dollars to Dr. Mor- 
ton, as a compensation for his discovery, and in consideration of the 
surrender to the United States of all right and interest which he 



148 

now holds in that discovery ^ in virtue of letters patent granted to 
him by this government.* 

* Wasbinqton, Jannary 5, 1847. 

Dear Sir : Yours of the 26th iilt. was received in due course of mail, and, in 
answer, I have to say that, at the time your application for preventing pain in 
surgical operations was under consideration in the Patent Office, Mr. Eddy con- 
sulted me on the novelty and patentability of your discovery. I then examined 
the subject carefully, and gave it as my decided and candid opinion that it was 
novel, and the legitimate subject of a patent ; and this opinion has only been 
strengthened by further reflection. Under the law, any new and useful art is 
made the subject of a patent. This covers any discovery in modes of procedure 
having a useful object in view, and susceptible of being so defined as to instruct 
others to apply or make use ot the mode of procedure. There can be no question 
that your discovery comes under this provision of law. It is a new mode of 
procedure, definite in its character, and which may be taught to others, and 
which, therefore, comes under the denomination of an art, as defined by the 
ablest judges in Europe and in this country. 

Before your discovery, many attempts had been made to render persons in- 
sensible to pain, preparatory to surgical operations, by introducing into the 
stomach intoxicating substances ; but this mode of procedure was unsuccessful. 
You then ' discovered that, by introducing into the lungs the vapor ot certain 
substances, a different effect was produced from that of intoxication produced by 
the introduction of substances into the stomach, and that this effect was such as 
to render the patient insensible to pain : hence the use of this discovery, in con- 
nexion with surgical operations, is an improvement in the art of surgery. A dis- 
covery in the abstract is not the subject of letters patent; as the discovery of the 
elastic force of steam ; of the pressure of the atmosphere ; of the expansion of 
metals under the influence of caloric, &c. ; for this is the mere finding out of 
something existing before. 

The mere discovery in these cases had no direct useful application in the arts 
or affairs of life, and could not be appropriated to the sole use of the discoverers 5 
but the moment any one of them could be applied to a useful practical purpose^ 
then the party so applying it produces a useful result; and such application, 
originating in the mind of the discoverer or inventor, is no longer a discovery, in 
the abstract, of something before existing, but a new creation, which, having its 
origin in the mind of the discoverer, and not existing before, (for it is an arti- 
ficial condition,) is, in view of the law, the property of the one who conceived it. 
There can be no question that the one who first conceived the idea of intoxica- 
ting a patient, preparatory to a surgical operation, would have been entitled to 
a patent for his new mode of procedure ; how, then, does your j>lan differ from 
his ? You conceived the idea that, by introducing the vapor of certain substan- 
ces into the lungs, a different condition of the nervous system was produced, viz : 
a state of insensibility to pain; and, by connecting this mode of producing this 
state of insensibility to pain with surgical operations, you have produced a new 
and useful result, highly importaut in the art of surgery; the result of a new con- 
ception, originating in your mind, and legitimately the subject of letters patent. 
Your invention is the connexion of the two processes or modes of operation. 

Before the date of Watt's invention of the steam-engine, the expansive force 
of steam had been applied to a piston in a cylinder, and it was well known that, 
by the application of cold water, steam could be condensed in a vessel to effect 
a vacuum ; and all that immortalized that great man was the union of these two 
ideas, or modes of procedure : applying the force of steam in one vessel, and 
condensing it in another. In a legal point of view, your invention does not dif- 
fi3r from this, which has been admitted to be patentable by all the legal knowl- 
edge of the world, and the universal consent of civilized man. 
I am, sir, yours, very respectfully. 

CHARLES M. K¥AAJ¥.J{, for Keller 6r Greejiough. 
Dr. "W. T, G. Morton, Bo-'^to/i, Mass. 



149 

The sum above mentioned will, it is believed, not be deemed 
too large,* when we remember the benefits which have been con- 
ferred, and when we consider the fact that, contrary to that pro- 
vision in the Constitution which declares that ^'private property 
shall not be taken for public use without just compensation/' 
this nation has been for years, and is now daily availing itself of 
the advantages to be derived from this new agent, by employ- 
ing it in her navy and army, and in other public institutions, 
without compensating the discoverer, and that too, after having 
issued a patent guaranteeing to him the full and exclusive privi- 
leges and rights accruing from his discovery. In view of these 
considerations, and of the fact that although nearly six years 
have elapsed since this discovery, no pecuniary benefits have been 
derived therefrom by the discoverer, and looking, also, to what 
is just and right from a great government to the greatest bene- 
factor of the human race of the present age, it is very desirable 
that his award shouhi be no longer delayed. 

The object of this communication, therefore, is to urge upon 
your consideration the practicability and proptiety of attaching 
the bill above referred to, to the "naval appropriation bill" for 
the ensuing fiscal year. 

For your further information in regard to the use of this agent 
in the army and navy, I enclose copies of letters from the Sur- 
geon General of the Army, and from the Chief of the Eureau of 
Medicine and S-urgery of the Navy, (see pages 82 and 86,) which 



February 19, 1847. 
I concur in the foregoing opinion entirely : entertaining no doubt that Dr. 
Morton's discovery is a new and useful art, and, as such, the proper subject of a 
patent. 

DANIEL WEBSTER. 



I have examined the question of the patentability of Dr. Morton's discovery 
of the anaesthetic powers of sulphuric ether, and its applicability to surgical ope- 
rations, and entertain no doubt as to the validity of the patent, or of his exclusive 
title thereto. 

J. M. 



*Eccl;ract of a letter dated Patent Office, Washington , November 16, 1846. 

It will of course be a source of great pecuniary profit. It must of course, 
come into general use, and licenses at moderate rates will produce a large 
revenue. EDMUND BURKE, 

C omm-issioney of Patents. 



150 

may be useful to you, in case you deem it proper or necessary to 
communicate on this subject with either the Secretary of War or 
of the Navy. 

Very respctfully, your obedient servant, 

W. H. BISSELL. 

Hon. Fred. P. Stanton, Chairraan Committee on JVaval Affairs^. 
House of Representatives, 

Upon the receipt of the letter from the chairman of the Select 
Committee upon the memorial of Dr. Morton, Mr. Stanton ad- 
dressed the following letter respectively to the Secretaries of 
War, Navy and the Treasury : 

Washington, June 7, 1852. 

Sir : I have the honor to transmit to you the enclosed commu- 
nication from the Hon. W. H. Biseell, with the copies of letters 
from the Chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery of the 
Navy, and the Surgeon General of the Army, and other docu- 
ments therein referred to, all of which relate to the memorial of 
Dr. William T'. G. Morton, asking remuneration from Congress 
for the discovery of the anaesthetic properties of sulphuric ether. 

I concur in most of the views and opinions expressed by Col. 
Eiesell as to the propriety and justice oi compensating one who 
is so eminently entitled to the gratitude not only of his comitry- 
men, but of the world at large, es])ecially when Dr. Morton pre- 
sents himself as the sole patentee of the discovery, and seeks, on 
condition of the surrender of his patent, remuneration for .the 
benefits which are alleged to have been received therefrom by the 
Government, through its constant use in the army and navy dur- 
ing the war with Mexico,"* and up to the present time. But in 
order to comply with Col. Bisseli's suggestion, by submitting: the 
matter to the Committee on Naval Affairs of the House of Rep- 
resentatives, I deem it appropriate and necessary to procure the 
A'iews of the department in an official form. 

* It is impossiVle not to jjerceive that the fact ot the government having dis- 
regarded Dr. Morton's patent, and appropriated his discovery to the public ser- 
vice without compensation, was attended with consequences far more injurious 
to his riglits than tne mere neglect or refusal to compensate him for the use of 
his property. Nothing could have struck more fatally at the validity of his 
patent, in public opinion, than the open infraction of it be the very Govern- 
ment from whom it had been purchased. Its direct tendency and practical 
effect, were to proclaim to the public that the patent was no obstacle in tlie way 
of the use of the discovery, without the license of the patentee. Accordingly 
it is a fact which has been made evident to the committee by a comparison of 
facts and other evidence, that although numerous sales were made by Dr. Mor- 
ton prior to the public announcement that the use of ether had been adopted in 
the public service, (New York Herald and other papers,) not a single applica- 
tion was made to him after that fact became generally known. 



151 

Supposing that you will concur in the views expressed by the 
chiefs of the Medical Corps of the Army and Navy, in the con- 
cluding paragraphs of their communications on the subject, I do 
not doubt that you will give the proposition of the Hon. Mr. 
Bissell a fair and liberal consideration. 

I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

FRED. P. STANTON. 

The following replies have been received : 

Treasury Department, 

June 25, 1852. 

Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the recept of your letter 
of the 17th instant, covering copies of a communication from the 
Hon. W. H. Bissell, ol a letter from the chief of the Bureau of 
of Medicine and Surgery of the Navy, and of a letter from the 
Surgeon General of the Army, with certain printed matter, all 
relating to the memorial of Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton, asking re- 
muneration from Congress for the discovery of the anaesthetic 
properties of sulphuric ether. 

An attentive examination of these several documents has satis- 
fied me that sulphuric ether and tincture of chloroform are very 
generally used in the army and navy of the United States,* as 
anaesthetic agents ; and the decided testimony borne to the merits 
of these etherial preparations by the chief of the Bureau of Medi- 
cine and Surgery of the Navy, and the Surgeon General of the 
Army, leaves no doubt upon my mind as to their great value in 

* E'Xtract froiTi a report of tJte Surgeoyi Ge'neral to the Secretary of War. 

'•Daring the three years immediately preceding, and the three rears of peace 
subsequent to the Mexican war, the average annual nmxiber of wounds and in- 
juries treated in the army has been 2,592." * * » u These agents (ether and 
chloroform) may be useful in all the amputations, in many of the fractures not 
requiring amputation, in a number of luxations, gunshot wounds, and other in- 
juries requiring an operation; also in a number of diseases, such as strangulated 
hernia, calculus, hfemorrhoids, fistulas, tumors, &c., requiring the knife, includ- 
ing cases of delirium tremens, and occasionally a case oi parturition." 

Dr. Richard H. Coolidge, of the Surgeon-General's Office, says: '^'I have 
examined the reports of sick and wounded from the army during the recent war 
with Mexico. I find that the number of gun-shot wounds reported, amounts to 
3,949, and that of all other wounds and injuries, to 5,392, making a total oi' 
9,881; which numbei- probably falls far short of what actually occurred."' 

Extract of report of Bureau of Medicine and Sitrgery lo the Secretary of War, 

<<The number of wounds and injuries of all kjnds requiring medical treatment 
in the naval service during the year 1860 was 1.379.'' 

Neither of the above reports includes wounds and injuries treated in the fit- 
teen U,. S. Marine Hospitals. 



152^ 

medical and surgical practice. In addition to the evidence thus 
afforded in their favor, I may mention the fact that these agents 
now form a part of the regular medical supply to the marine hos- 
pitals of the United States, and that they are employed therein 
with very genera] success. 

Regarding the discovery of the anesthetic properties of sul- 
phuric ether, as, in the language of Surgeon General Lawson, 
'*one of the most important and valuable contributions to medical 
science, and to the relief of suffering humanity, ever made," I 
concur entirely with Col. Bissell and yourself, as to the propriety 
and justice of liberally compensating the patentee, who has not 
at any time received pecuniary advantage* from his discovery, 
and w4io now appeals to the Legislature of his country, on con- 
dition of the surrender of his patent for the benefit of mankind, 
for proper remuneration in lieu of the gains that he w^ould have 
derived had he been protected in the use of the rights conferred 
upon him by letters patent of the government. I therefore recom- 
mend that such reasonable and liberal sum, as the committee of 
which you are chairman may in their discretion determine upon, 
be reported as a national compeiisation to Dr. Morton, and that 



* Boston, ^^r?7 20, 1852. 
Dr. IT. T. G. MoRTox: Bear Sir : As by the terms of the agreement made 
between yourself and me on the 30th day of October, 1846, 1 am required as often 
as once in six months to render you an account of the net profits resulting from 
saJes of certain patents, etc, as will appear by reference to said agreement. I 
have now to inform you, and do inform you, that up to this date, April 2, 
1847, 1 have received no net profits on account of any. and therefore can render 
you no further account than this, nor pay to you any moneys resulting from any 
net profits received. 

Yours, respectfully, 

R. H. EDDY. 

lEztract from a Utltr v;ritten by Caleb Eddy, Esq., of Bosfov, to Hon. Roheri 
C. Whtthrop, Speaker of the House of Krpre-sp'iitative--< 30fA Co77gress.'] 

" To my knowledge he has spent large sums of money, and I think deserves 
some consideration in return.'" 

\^Extraits from letters written in 1848, to the Trustees of the Mas aaehu setts 
General Hospital, by B. F. Brooks, an eminent lawyer, aiid. Mr. Joseph Bur- 
nett , merchant, both of Boston.'] 

"I have gone somewhat into detail, that you may see the nature ot Dr. Mor- 
ton's embarrassments. They have grown out of his efforts in a, cause which has 
resulted in a great pvllic good, and he deserves a better fate than to he left to aink 
under ther/i. 

« Yours trulv, 

"BENJAMIN F. BROOKS." 

"And I am satisfied thai he has been a loser of several thousand dollars^ 
directlv or indirectlv, in consequence of his labors devoted to this object. 

"JOSEPH BURNETT " 



153 

the same be attached, as proposed by Col. Bisseil, to the "naval 
appropriation bill" for the ensuing fiscal year. 

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

THO. CORWIN, 
Secretary of the Treasury. 
Hon. Frederick P. Stanton, 

Chairman Kaval Committee House of Representatives. 

War Department, 

Washington, June 21, 1852, 

Sir: I have received your letter of the 7th instant, enclosing 
sundry documents relating to the memorial of Dr. William T, G. 
Morton, who seeks remuneration from the Government for the 
discovery of the anesthetic properties of sulphuric ether. 

In reply I beg leave to state that I have no information on the 
subject o{: this discovery other than that which I have derived 
from public rumor and from the documents you enclose, it being 
exclusively a professional question. All the information which 
this department could furnish the committee is contained in the 
letter from the Surgeon Geaieral, which is among the papers you 
enclose. 

Judging from this information, there can be but little doubt that 
this discovery is one of the most valuable contributions that 
science has ever made to the cause of humanity. 

I do not know what the practice of the Government has 
been in regard to rewarding individuals for indentions or dis- 
coveries made by them,* or, at least, compensating them for 



* LisC of Patent.^ imr chased and used in the Army of the United States. 

Thomas Blonchard. — For the nse of several machines for turning or cutting 
irregular forms, constituting in the whole what is generally known as the Gun- 
stock Turning Machine, with the several improvements for the use of it, and in 
connection with this invention there has been paid to Mr. Blanchard by this 
Department, for the privilege of using the same, $18,921 50. 

./. H. ll'dl — For the right to make and use patent breech loading rifle and 
carbine, and all the machinery for making the same, there has been paid to Mr. 
HaH and his heirs, the sum of $37,553 32. 

Dr. E. Maynard, March 20, 1845. — For the right to make and use his im- 
proved lock and percussion priming for small arms, and to apply the same to 
4,000 muskets, there has been paid to Dr. Maynard, $4,000. 

The right to use the invention and apply the same to a greater number of arms 
at a reduced scale of prices has been secured, and may be used if desirable, as 
follows, viz: For 10,000 muskets, $7,500; for 20,000 muskets, $10,000; for 
100,000 muskets, $25,000 ; any greater number at a price to be agreed upon,'not 
exceeding 25 cents for each musket. 

J. B. Hyde, Dec. 1846. — For the riglit to make and use Hales's patented war 
rocket to an unlimited extent for the military service, $10,000. 

.S(. Mower and W. H. Scoville, attorneys of P. W. Gates, Sept. 5, 1848.— For 
the right to make and use in all establishments of the Ordnance Department 
Gates' patent dies for cutting screws, $750. 

Long's Bridge Patent. — For the Bridge patent privilege there has been paid 
$850. 



154 

the use of them in the public service, [see pages 184 and 143,] 
but I do not hesitate to say that if it has been the practice of 



Mitchell's Screw File. — For Sand Key Lighthouse, $1,700. For BrandywiDC 
Lighthouse and Ice-hreaker, $2,400. 
Boettther's Faze. 
Stevens's Shell. 

List of Patents purchctried and used in the Navy of the United States, 

Stevens' «' Cut-off.'' — For right to use two on Mississippi or other steamer 
during continuance of Datect, $2,500 ; for right to use on Saranac, $2,700. — 
Total, $5,200. 

Sickell and Cook's ^'Cut-of." — For right to use on Michigan, $3,000; on 
Water Witch, $750; on G-en. Taylor, $500; on Powhatan, $6,tj81 25; on San 
Jacinto, $4,418; on Fulton, $1,780 98; on Princeton. $2,700; on Alleghany, 
$3,927.— Total, $23,757 23. 

George W. Taylors ^^ Marine Camels.-' — For one set for first class sloop-of- 
war, with right to use said camels during continuance of patent, $27,500. — 
Total, $27,500. 

^West and Thompson's '■'Clasp Coupling." — For right to use on Susquehanna, 
Saranac, San Jacinto, and Powhatan, $1 20 per inch diameter of attached vessel. 

Worthifigtofi and Baker's '^ Steam Pump." — For one for San Jacinto, $500 ; 
two for Powhatan at $500, $1,000; two for Princeton at $600, $1,200; two for 
Alleghany at $600, $1,200; one for Water Witch, $400; one for Vixen, $400; 
one for Fulton, $500 ; two for Mississippi, $1,100; two for Saranac, $1,000 ; two 
for Susquehanna, $1,000; article manufactured and patent included in each 
case.— Total, $8,300. 

Worthington and Baker's ^^ Perctission Water Guage.'' — For three for Prince- 
ton at $80,'S240 ; three for Alleghany at $80, $240; four for Powhatan at $60, 
$240 ; four for Mississippi at $60, $240 ; one for Water Witch, $60 ; one for 
Yixen, $60; two for Fulton at $60, $120; three for Saranac at $60, $180 ; article 
manufactured and patent included in each case. — Total, $1,380. 

Copeland's •' Self-Acti/ig Bloiv." — For right to use and make for Fulton, San 
Jacinto, and Powhatan, $1,270; for Vixen, $144: for Saranac, $480 — Total, 
$1,894. 

Sewell's ^- Sali/wrarter.s." — For seven for Alleghany at $75, $525 ; seven for 
Princeton at $75, $525 ; four for Susquehanna at $75, $300; four for Powhatan 
at $75, $800; three for Saranac at $75, S225, four for Fulton at $75, $300; one 
for Water Witch, $75; one for Vixen, $75; four for Mississippi at $75, S300; 
three for San Jacinto at $75, $225 ; article manufactured and patent included in 
each case.— Total, $2,850. 

Allen and Noyes' " Metallic Po.cking.'' — For right to use on Powhatan, Mis- 
sissippi, and Michigan, $3,400; on Saranac, $1,250; on Princeton, $900; on 
Alleghany, $900: on Water Witch, $700; on Vixen, $700.— Total, $7,850. 

Pirsson's " Condenser." — For right to use on Alleghany, inclusive of his per- 
sonsal attendance while manufacturing, $1,000. — Total, $1000. 

Lamh and Summer's <-'■ Sheet-Jiiie Boiler." — For right to make and use on 
Princeton and Alleghany, $5,085 ; on Water Witch and Vixen, $1,800. — Total, 
6,885. 

B. Crawford^s •' Steam Thermo m-zt-cr.'' — For one to be used at the Foundry 
Washington Navy Yard, inclusive of patent, $100. — Total, $100. 

Lt. Hunter's '< Submersed Wheel." — For right to use on Alleghanv, (not now 
used,) $10,320.— Total, $i0,320. 

Francis' " Life Boat." — For one for Mississippi, $520 ; one for Vandalia, $520 ; 
one for Vincennes, $540; one for Saranac, $520; one for Alleghany, $540 ; one 
for Copper Cutter, $540 ; one Dingy for Washington Yard, $50 ; one Dingy, $126 ; 
one Dingy for Alleghany, $126 ; one Copper Cutter, S540 ; manufactured article 
and patent included in each case. — Total. $4,022. 



155 

Congress to grant such rewards or compensation, Dr. Morton's 
claim is fairly entitled to the most liberal consideration. 
Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

C, M. CONRAD, 

Secretary of War. 
Hen. Frederick P. Stanton, 

Chairman Committee on JVaval Affairs, House oj Reps. 



Navy Department, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, 

June 29, 1852. 

Sir : I have had the honor to receive your letter of yesterday's 
date, in relation to the memorial of Dr. W. T. G. Morton, asking 
of Congress remuneration for the discovery of the anaesthetic pro- 
perties of sulphuric ether, and calling upon me for a statement as 
to the basis on which the claim is founded, with an estimate of 
the amount to which, in my opinion, he is entitled, on the score 
of the benefits and advantages resulting from its use in the naval 
service. 

As the views of the Bureau in regard to the importance of this 
discoveryjhave been already expressed in a communication to Dr. 
Morton, I beg leave to extract so much of it as relates to this 
branch of the subject. 

" In reply to your inquiry as to the importance attached to the 
late discovery oi etherization, by the Medical Corps of the Navy, 
it gives me pleasure to express the high sense they entertain of its 
utility, not only in surgical practice, but as a powerful agent in 
many painful affections which have resisted the ordinary remedies. 
This opinion is strengthened by the concurrent testimony of the 
ablest civil practitioners of our own country, with the emphatic 
endorsement of its value by the best British and continental sur- 
geons. 

" The gist of this discovery consists in finding that nervous 
perception is suspended under the influence of the etherial inhala- 
tion; and while suspended, that the patient is unconscious of pain 
under the operation of the knife. In addition to the great benefit 
derived from its use, in alleviating pain, it has a decided eifect in 
diminishing mortality. Its advantage in 'this respect appears to 
be in saving the system from the severe shock and nervous ex- 
haustion which attend most of the graver surgical operations, and 
which of themselves often prove fatal. 

'^It dispels the fear of pain which formerly prevented many 
from submitting to an operation, or induced them to defer it until 
too late. 

" It enables the surgeon, also, to operate coolly and eifeGtually, 
undisturbed by the cries and struggles of the patient, which some- 
times unnerve the steadiest hand, and render abortive the best 
direrted efforts." 



156 

In regard to the grounds on which Dr. Morton bases his claim 
to pecuniary remuneration from the Government, I would state 
that, from the peculiar nature of the discovery, it is impossible to 
protect the inventor in the exclusive advantage of it by letters 
patent. The novelty of the discovery consists in the new appli- 
cation of an old remedial agtnt, and the privilege of using it, on 
the part of the profession at large, cannot be practically curtailed 
by statutory enactinent. The inventor is thus deprived of the 
pecuniapy advantages of hi> discovery, and is justified in appeal- 
ing to fhe Government, which also largely avails itself of the 
benefits derived from it, for relief. 

It will be dithcult to estimate the amount which the inventor 
may reasonably ask of the Government in consideration of the 
advantages attending its use in the two services. For the reasons 
above mentioned, the cost of the ether itself cannot enter as an 
element into the calculation, and the fairest estimate, 1 conceive, 
might be more nearly approximated by the amount one would be 
willing to give to be rescued from impending death, or to be re- 
lieved from urgent and intolerable pain. 

I would express the opinion, however, that the sum of one 
hundred thousand dollars proposed by the Select Committee of 
the House of Representatives as a compensation to the inventor, 
is nothing more than a fair equivalent for the immense advantage 
resulting to the Government and country from this important dis- 
covery. 

I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

THOS. HARRIS, 
Chief Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. 

Hon. Wm. a. Graham, Secretary of the JS^avy. 



Extract of a letter from John Watson, M. D. 

New York Hospital, January 10, 1852. 
The wondeiful action of ether and the other anaesthetics in 
alleviating suffering, and in overcoming spasm and muscular re- 
sistance during the most protracted, difficult, and delicate sur- 
gical membulations, is sufficient to place them among the most 
useful discoveries that ever have been effected, and to entitle Mr. 
Morton, who first demonstrated the ancestheiic properties and 
use of sulphuric ether, to the gratitude of his countrymen, and 
to give him rank among the benefactors of the human race. 
I remain, with becoming respect, 

^ ^ JNO. WATSON. 

'- George Newjbold, Esq. 



West Point, New York, February 14, 1852. 

Both ether and chloroform are used as anaesthetic agents in the 
army. 

I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

JNO. W. CUYLER, 
Surgeon U. S, Army. 
Hon. W. II. EissELL, Chairman, ^c. 



St. Louis, Mo., February 12, 1852. 

Ether was first used by the army early in 1847, during the 
Mexican war, more particularly on General Scott's line, as at 
that period a complicated and fragile inhalator was employed for 
its use : of the number of instruments sent to the army, tw^o, in- 
tended for the Rio Grande line, were broken in the transporta- 
tion ; hence the ether was little used, if at all, on that line. The 
chloroform was early introduced in the army, not soon enough to 
have had experience of it or chloric ether during the war. It is 
now one of the principal articles of our medical supplies, and is 
in general use. 

The chloroform is as highly esteemed by the medical officers 
of the army and navy as by the surgeons, in general practice ; it 
is certainly an inestimable boon to suffering humanity. To my 



158 

knowledge no important surgical operation, including reduction 
of dislocations, fractures, &c., is performed in the army without 
its being employed. 

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, your obedient ser- 
vant, E. H. ABADIE, 

Assistant Surgeon U, S. Army. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL, Chairman j ^x. 



Fort Adams, R. I., February 10, 1852. 
I have no doubt their effect is greatly to lessen mortality in 
surgieal operations. 

Most respectfully, your obedient servant, 

R. S. SATTERLEE, 

Surgeon U. S. Army. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL, Chairman, Src. 



West Point, N. Y., February 12, 1852. 
Says it was introduced into the Mexican war. I shall con- 
sider it the greatest boon of the soldier. 

J. SIMONS, 
Asst. Surgeon U. S. Army. 



Athens, Georgia, February 9, 1852. 
I reply, that in the navy of the United States, to my know- 
ledge, both ether and chloroform are used as anaesthetic agents. 

That the discovery is of American origin and due to Dr. Mor- 
ton, seems so well established and believed, that it is needless for 
me to add anything on this head. The memory of such a man 
should be written '* in cerea perenes ;" and it would reflect honor 
upon his country to reward his labors while living. Such a man 
can proudly exclaim with the immortal Tycho Bache, '' I have 
not lived in vain.*' 

A. A. FRANKLIN HILL, 

Asst. Surgeon U. S. Army. 



New York, January 3, 1852. 
I would state that sulphuric ether and tincture of chloroform 
are among the medical supplies furnished for the use of the array. 

T. G. MOWER, 
Surgeon U. S. Army. 



159 

New York, January 31, 1852. 
Chloroform and sulphuric ether are, I believe, furnished gene- 
rally to the army. * * * The effect of these agents is 
wonderful and most valuable in lessening pain and suffering. 

ROBERT MURRAY,, 
Asst. Surg;eon U. S. Army, 



Philadelphia, January 27, 1852. 
And so far as my observation extends, (having witnessed a 
large number of most painful operations under the influence of 
ether,) I can but consider the discovery of the properties of these 
agents as the greatest boon that poor suffering humanity has ever 
received. 

W. WHETON, 
Surgeon U. S. Army. 



Fort Washington, Indiana, January 27^ 1852. 
Medical officers are supplied with chloroform for the use of 
the army. * # * j j^^^^ ^g^j ^^ myself, 

LEWIS A. EDWARDS, 

Surgeon U. S. Army. 



Germantown, January 26, 1852. 
Some of these agents are always added to the requisitions of 
medical surgeons. 

O. J. WESTER, 
Asst. Surgeon U. S, Arm«j, 



Fort Moultrie, Charleston Harbor, S. C, 

February 19, 1852. 
Sulphuric ether was used in the General Hospital at Vera Cruz, 
Mexico, in the summer of 1847. I had charge of that hospital, 

J. B. PORTER, M. D., 

Surgeon U. S, Army. 



Plattsburgh Barracks, N, Y, 
I have used ether, as before stated, far many years. 

J. MAKLIN, 
Asst. Surg. U. S. Army. 



160 

Jefferson Barracks, Mo. 
C A. Fiiiley, Surgeon U. S. Army, uses it and says: "As an 
alleviator of human suffering, I consider it the most important 
discovery that has been made since the days of Jenner. 



Fort Meade, Florida. 
Jona. Letturman, Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army, says he uses 
them in " diseases involving the nervous system — in allaying the 
vomiting of an irritable stomach — in cramp colic — and in delirium 
tremens. Its administration in all was followed by complete relief. 
In a case of delirium tremens, in which all the ordinary remedies? 
were used without effect, I attribute the saving the patient's life 
to the administration of chloroform." 



Fort Scott, Missouri. 
Jos. K. Barnes, Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army, says, " both ether 
and chloroform h-ive been, and continue to be used as anaesthetic 
agents by myself and others in army practice. The use of chlo- 
roform, under m^- immediate notice, has been confined to its anaes- 
thetic effects during surgical operations of some magnitude, in 
which freedom from pain on the part of the patient was considered 
conducive to safety and celerity in operating. No medical officer 
is likely to be without them.'' 



Fort Dodge, Iowa. 
Charles C. Keeney, Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army, says "ether 
and chloroform are both used as anaesthetic agents in the army. 
They are used to a great extent in neuralgic diseases, and in am- 
putations of the extremities, and extirpation of various tumors — 
all with remarkable o^ood effect in annulling sensation and volun- 
tary motion. Where I have been stationed they have been used 
to a great extent." 



Fort Ripley, Mi>^nesota Territory. 
J. Frazier Head, assistant Surgeon U. S. Army, uses them, and 
says, " as in many important opejations in surgery the nervous 
shock, resulting from the pain experienced, is an element of great 
importance in determining the issue of the case, an agent which 
removes this element with comparative safety, and no bad influence 
to counterbalance this advantage, cannot fail to diminish the mor- 
tality attendant upon such operations." 



161 

U. S. Naval Hospital, Portsmouth, Va, 
N. C. Barrabino, Surgeon U. S, Navy, says ether and chloro- 
form is used both in the army and navy, and is decidedly of the 
opinion that their use lessens morality. 



Fort McIntosh, Loredo, Texas. 
G. Pierce, Assistant Surgeon U. S. Army, uses them, and says, 
" I am inclined to form a very high opinion of chloroform as a 
remedial aoent." 



r> 



Fort Webster, New Mexico, May 27, 1852. 

Sir : It gives me pleasure, in compliance with your request, to 
enclose to you the accompanying table. My experience in the 
larger amputations is, you will perceive, small, but favorable in 
the highest dtgree to the good effects of etherization. Wishing 
your success, 

" I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

WILLIAM A. HAMMOND, 

Asst. Surgeon JJ. S. A\ 
Dr. W. T. G. Morton, Washington, D, C. 



Fort Duncan, Texas. 
All my experience regarding ansesthetic agents has been in par- 
turition, and I can assure you that the effect has always exceeded 
my most sanguine hopes. 

GEO, E. COOPER, 

Jisst. Surgeon U. S. J2. 



Baltimore, February 2, 1852. 

That the discovery of an agent which assuages or annihilates 
the severe pain often experienced in diseases, necessarily inflicted 
to a greater or less degree in operations on the human body, and 
generally incident to the condition of the female in the act of par- 
turition, should, at the very first blush, commend itself to the ac- 
ceptance of all mankind, and that the discoverer of such an agent 
.should be regarded as having conferred the highest earthly boon 
on afflicted humanity, are propositions too obvious to need the 
slightest argument to enforce tbem. 

Whether ether or chloroform is used in the army for anaesthetic 

11 



162 

purposes, I have no means of knowing, but it is certainly so used 
in tlie practice of the navy. 

I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, 

J. BEALE, M. D. 

Surgeon tl, S. Jfavy. 
To Hon. W. H. Bissell, Chairman, Src. 



Naval Rendezvous, New Youk, February 7, 1852. 
By most of the medical profession these agents are highly ap- 
preciated, and it is believed that Mr. Morton, who made public 
his discovery of the anaesthetic power of ether, is deserving a pub- 
lic reward. 

T have the honor to be, very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

D. S. EDWARDS, 
Surgeon U. S. JYavy. 
To Hon. W. H. BissELL, Chairm,an, Src. 



Erie, Penn., January 30, 1852. 
I should hold myself bound to use sometimes the one, some- 
times the other, in various conditions of disease and injury. 

WM. MAXWELL WOOD, 

Surgeon U, S. Jfavy. 



Norfolk, February 4, 1852. 
Chloroform or sulphuric ether are used in the naval service as 
an ansesthetic agent. 

They are principally used in the naval service to lessen pain, 
and enable a timid or excitable patient to undergo an operation. 

JAMES CORNICK, 

Surgeon U. S. Jfavy. 



Philadelphia. 
That they are used in the army and navy. I think they dimin- 
ish mortality, 

DANIEL EGBERT, 

Surgeo-n U. S. Jfavy. ■ 



163 

Philadelphia. 
1 have used chloroform as an anaesthetic agent in my practice 
m the navy. 

J. HOPKINSON, 

U. S. Jfavy. 



U. S. Ship Pennsylvania, NoRroLK, Va. 
D. B. Phillips, Assistant Surgeon United States Navy, uses 
them, and speaks of them in the highest terms. 



Anna POLLS. Md. 
My experience has been, as yet, limited to some sixteen surgical 
cases. In preventing the sufferings of surgical operations, I con- 
sider chloric ether entitled to rank as the crowning medical dis- 
covery of the day. The cases in which I used it were for the 
removal of cancerous breasts, and large tumors situated in delicate 
parts. I should strenuously recommend its introduction on board 
of our vessels of war. 

NINIAN PINKNEY, 

Surgeon U. S. JSTavy. 



U. S. Naval Hospital^ Chelsea. 
They are both used as ana3sthetic agents in the navy. 

S. RUDENSTEIN, 

U. S. jYavy. 



U. S. Ship Pennsylvania, Norfolk, Va. 
Chloroform is used in the navy. Its use has been confined to 
amputations and other painful and protracted surgical operations, 
and with decided benefit. 

D. B. PHILLIPS, 
Assistant Surgeon U. S. JV'avi/. 



Philadelphl^. 
Ether and chloroform are both employed as anaesthetic agents 
m the United States Navy. Diminish mortality in a very notable 
proportion. 

JOHN O'CONNOR BARCLAY, 

Passed Mmstanf SurQecm U, S. JWivy, 



164 

U. S. Navy Yajrd> Gosport, Va. 
Samuel BarriDgton, Surgeon United States Navy, says they are 
used in the army and navy. 



U. S. Steam Frigate San Jacinto, Gosport, Va, 
1 have witnessed the use of ether and chloroform as anaesthetic 
agerits in the navy. These agents have been very generally em- 
ployed in a great variety of cases, and with favorable effect. 

JOHN H. WRIGHT, 
Passed Jlssistant Surgeon U. S. JVavy. 



U. S, Naval Rendezvous, 

Boston, January 30, 1852. 
I have seen chloroform used in the navy. * * * x would 
use it in all surgical operations when it was desirable to prevent 
pain. 

GEO. MALTSBY, U. S. jY. 



U. S. Marine Hospital, St. Louis. 
My impression is, that they are used in the army and navy, to 
a considerable extent ; my impression being derived from an ac- 
quaintance with many of the medical staff of those branches of the 
public service, from their publications in the medical journals of 
the country, and from their known disposition to keep pace with 
the progress of science. They are regarded as one of the greatest 
gifts that science could lay on the altar of humanity. They have 
now been used on })erha]is millions of persons, indiscriminately, 
in both hemispheres. 

CHAS. A. POPE, U. S. J\: 



U. S. Marine Hospital, 

New Orleans, Feb. 17, 1852. 
As regards the use of anesthetic agents, we have invariably 
employed chloroform in operations ; also for perineal section, for 
stricture of the urethra, and minor surgery, without any unplea- 
sant results, and I think with more favorable convalescence. 

P. B. McKELVY, 
Principal PhyMcian and Surgeon. 



165 

Dr. J. H. Hopkinson, U. S. navy, uses chioroform. 

Wm. Lowber, U. S. navy, says ether and chloroform are used. 

John H. Wright, passed assistant surgeon U, S. navy, uses 
them. 

r. E. Phillips, assistant surgeon, U. S. navy, has used them. 

John L. Fox, surgeon U. S. Naval Hospital, Chelsea, says he 
has used them. 

John L. Burtt, U. S. navy, U. S. Naval Hospital, N. Y., uses 
chloroform. 

Geo. Blacknall, surgeon U. S. navy, Norfolk, Ya.^ says they 
are used. 

Wm. A. Nelson, M. D., U. S. navy, says it is used in the navy. 

D. S. Edwards, surgeon U. S. navy, says ether and chloroform 
are used in the navy. 

Charles S. Tripler, surgeon U. S. army. Fort Gratiot, Mich., 
uses them. 

R. O. Wood, surgeon U. S. army, says it has been used in the 
army. 

A. S. Wotherspoon, assistant surgeon U. S. army — Surgeon 
General's Office — bears testimony to its high value. 

Josiah Simpson, assistant surgeon U. S. army. Fort Wood, 
New York harbor, uses ether. 

Dr. Macklin, assistant surgeon, U. S. army, uses ether. 

L. D. Williams, Havre de Grace, says anaesthetic agents are 
used. 

Ebenezer Swift, surgeon U. S., Fort Martin Scott. Texas, uses; 
ansesthetie agents. 

Dr. J. N. Schoolfield, Marine Hospital, Norfolk, Ya., uses 
anaesthetic agents. 



■•■■ 



166 

Dr. Henry S. Leveret, U. S. Marine Hospital, Mobile, use® 
ansesthetie agents. 

Dr. WilliaiQ Ingalis, U. S. Marine Hospital, Chelsea, Massa- 
chusetts, uses ana)sthetic agents. 

Dr. M. L. Hewitt, U. S. Marine Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio, 
uses them. 

Alexander H. Hassier, Texas, assistant surgeon U. S. army, 
uses anaesthetic agents. 

Thomas H. Williams, assistant surgeon U. S. army, Fort North, 
Texas, speaks highly of them. 

T. C. Madison, U. S. army, uses anassthetic agents. 



Extract of a letter Jrom Henry J. Bowditch, Physician of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital. 

Boston, January 4, 1'852. 

1 presume that the discovery of the ansesthetic properties of 
ether, and its practical application to Medicine, will take a rank 
quite equal to that of vaccination. To no one does the world owe 
so much for this practical application, as to Dr. Morton. In fact I 
am fully convinced that had it not been for the boldness of that 
gentleman, the world to the present hour would have been igno- 
rant ©f these peculiar adaptations of ether to alleviate human 
suffering. I say boldness 7iow. In former times, however, I said 
rashness; for I believe I may say, without fear of contradiction 
that the medical profession, as a body, would have feared death 
as the result, from experiments such as are now made daily with- 
out the least fear. Dr. Morton has convinced us from error. 
Doubtless he received suggestions from other similar experiments, 
made by several individuals, but to his indomitable perseverance 
do w^e finally owe all the essential good which the discoverer has 
bestowed on man. 

I hope, therefore, that Dr. Morton will receive a tribute of re- 
spect from Congress, that shall be commensurate with the great 
benefits that he has bestowed upon the nation. 

I remain, very respectfully, yours, 

HENRY I. BOWDITCH 

Hoh. W. li. BiSSELL. 



167 



Extract of a letter from Henri/ J. Bigelow, Professor in Harvard 
University^ and Surgeon in Massachusetts General Hospital. 

Boston, January 3, 1852. 
I trust that Dr. Morton will now at last receive a substantial 
and liberal return for his discovery that ether can annul pain; 
1. With safety — with less risk, for example, than everybody 
daily encounters either in walking or riding ; 2. With certainty 
in every case. 

I have the honor to be, respectfully, your obH. servant, 

HENRY J. BTGELOW. 
W. H. BissELL, Chairman, ^c. 



Extract of a letter from James Jackson, M. D., Prof essor Eme- 
ritus of Theory and Practice of Physic in the University at 
Cambridge, Honorary Member of the Royal Medico-Chirurgi- 
cal Society of London, Src. 

Boston, January 5, 1852. 
" I have, nevertheless, watched the new use of ether and chlo- 
roform with great interest from the first annunciation of this dis- 
covery by Dr. Morton ; and I will say, in general, that it would 
be difficult to exaggerate the benefits of these ansesthetic agents. 
The great and undoubted benefits of ether are shown in surgi- 
cal and obstetric practice ; and I believe these are such as to en- 
title the discoverer of its good effects, when employed by inhala- 
tion, to a very large reward. 

I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

JAMES JACKSON. 
Hon. W. H. BissjELL. 

la a communication to the former committee of the House, Dr,. 
Jackson says : "In my opinion Dr. Morton is entitled to a grant 
from Congress for the ether discovery, more than any and all 
other persons in the world." 



Extract of a letter from Richard Girdler, M, D. 

Boston, January 27, 1852. 
I was present at those operations when ether was first admin- 
istered at the hospital ; saw its effects with admiration and aston- 
ishment, and am witness to its successful application almost every 
day ; and hope the committee will report favorably upon the just 



168 

claims of Wm. T. G. Mortorij who, I believe, is entitled to the 
merit of the discovery, and conseq\ientIy should receive a fitting 
Te:ward. 

Very respectfully, sir, your obedient servant, 

RICHARD GIRDLER, 
Superintendent Massachusetts General Hospital, 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from George Hayward^ M. D., Professor of 

Harvard University, and Surgeon in Massachusetts General 

Hospital. 

Boston, January 8, 1852. 

I cannot close this letter without saying, that I regard sulphu- 
ric ether, the agent first used by Dr. Morton, as by far the best 
anaesthetic agent ; that I believe the world is indebted to him 
for its introduction into practice by proving by actual experiment, 
what was not before known or generally believed, that it could 
be inhaled with safety. 

I certainly regard this discovery as one of the greatest of the 
age, and think that Dr. Morton is entitled to a liberal grant from 
our country for the benefit that he has conferred on the human 
race. 

I am, with much resnect, your obedient servant, 

GEO. HAY WARD. 

Hob. W. H. Bissell. 



Extract of a letter from Thomas P, Jackson. 

Boston, February 4, 1852. 

I consider the discovery and introduction of sulphuric ether as 
an ansesthotic agent to be second to no discovery in medical sci- 
ence, not even to the discovery of vaccination, and that we arc 
solely indebted for its introduction by Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton. 

My opinion is that no compensation Congress can confer on Di, 
Morton will equal his deserts, and I really hope that for once a 
deserving man may receive his recompense dming his life, instead 
cl having a monument erected over his grave. I would say, in 
conclusion, that I have not the slightest acquaintance with Dr. 
Morton, and that I believe it is the general wish of the profession 
in this vicinity that Dr. Morton shall receive some remuneration 
for the benefits he has conferred on suffering humanity. 
Yours respectfully, 

' THOS. p. JACKSON, M. D. 

Hon. W. H. Bissell. 



169 



Extract of a letter from Dr. Putnam. 

Boston, February 14, 1852. 
In regard to the estimate m which I hold it, (ether,) I cannot, 
perhaps, give a more satisfactory proof than by stating that, im- 
mediately after my first experiments, I insisted on Dr. Morton's 
acceptance of a small sum of money in acknowledgment of my 
personal obligation to him, and as an earnest of what I consid- 
ered to be his due from the whole community. 
With great respect, I am yours, 

CHAS. G. PUTNAM, M. D. 
To the Committee. 



Extract of a letter from Augustus A. Gould, M. D. 

Boston, January 15, 1852. 

I cannot but hope that Congress will do something noble in 
this case. Other nations have already bestowed honors and 
emoluments upon those they have deemed entitled in testimonial 
of their appreciation of this, the greatest boon which has yet been 
granted to the keenest sufferings of mankind. And it is not seemly 
that our own nation should pass by in silence one of the greatest 
and most universally applicable discoveries which the world can 
boast of. The person or persons instrumental in bestowing it de- 
serve substantial reward. 

I have happened to know every step in the early introduction 
of the use of ether as an anaesthetic agent. And I am familiar 
with the odium, the denunciations, and the persecutions, and 
threatened persecutions which were so liberally showered at its 
introduction. They came from honest men, whose experience 
had led them to apprehend serious danger. But with firmness of 
purpose, disregard of threats, and no lack or stint of expense, 
the demonstration was soon complete, and all rational opposition 
has long since been silent ; and now it is not only a subject for 
national pride and national gratitude, but it commands and re- 
ceives the gratitude of the world. 

Very respectfully, vour obedient servant, 

AUGUSTUS A. GOUIJ). 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



170 



Extract of a letter from Albion S. Dudley, M. D. 

Boston, February 3, 1852. 
Dr. Morton certainly was the first in this city to reveal the 
anaesthetic effects of the sulphuric ether to the public, and suc- 
cessfully introduce it into the Massachusetts Medical College, to 
my certain knowledge, 

I have the honor to be, jours respectfully. 

ALBION S. DUDLEY. 
To the Hon. W. H. Bissell. 



Extract of a letter from A. L. Petrson, M. D. 

Salem, January 17, 1852. 

I have toiled through five and thirty years of medical, and es- 
pecially surgical practice, in a dense population, during most of 
the time in conscious need of some pain-destroying remedy, and 
I hail the discovery of the application of the properties of ether 
with devout gratitude to a beneficent Creator, who has vouch- 
safed such a blessing to suffering humanity ; and with sincere 
thankfulness to Dr. Morton as being the efficient and fortunate 
agent by whose means it has been placed in the hands of the 
medical profession. For although the inhalation of ether, to pro- 
duce intoxication, may not have been a new idea previous to Oc- 
tober, 1846, yet Dr. Morton, at that time, partially demonstrated 
its safety, utility, and applicability, in making surgical operations 
painless, and was the procuring cause of its being now employed 
by all classes of medical practitioners, in taking away that dread 
of human nature — pain. 

I have the honor to subscribe myself, very respectfully, 

' A. L. PEIRSON. 

Hon. W. H. Bissell. 



Letter from J. F. May^ Professor of Surgery, JYational Medical 
College, Washington. 

Washington, February 10, 1852. 
Sir : I have received your circular requesting of me an an- 
swer to the following inquiries : 

1. Is ether or chloroform used as an anaesthetic agent in your 
Institution ? 

2. If used, to what extent, in what classes of diseases or of 
operations, and with what effect ? 



171 

0. What, in your opinion, is tlieir effect in diminishing tnor- 
taiity ? 

4, To what extent, in what classes of cases, and with what 
result are they used in private practice in your vicinity ? 

5, In what appreciation are they held by the medical faculty 
within your knowledge ? 

I reply : 

1. Chloric ether is always used by me and my colleagues, as 
an aucesthetic agent, in every operation of any importance that 
is performed in the Washington Infirmary, of which Institution 
I am one of the surgeons. 

2» For more than three years I have constantly used it, both 
in hospital and private practice, and it has never, in a single in- 
stance, disappointed me in producing insensibility to pain, and 1 
have never found its administration to be attended or followed by 
any serious result. I have given it at all ages, from the tender 
infant to the old andinfirm man, and from a few moments to more 
than an hour at a time. I have performed under its influence 
many of the most important and capital operations of surgery ; 
among which I may mention lithotomy, strangulated hernia, the 
removal of tumors from various regions, the different amputations 
of both the upper and lower extremities, from the removal of a 
lina:er to disarticulation of the hip joint, &c. 

3. I am perfectly convinced that the use of anaesthetic agents 
has greatly diminished the mortality of surgical operations, and 
I am prepared to say further, that I would almost as soon think 
of amputating a limb without previously compressing its princi- 
pal artery, as to perform a difficult and dangerous operation 
without first putting the patient in an anaesthetic state. I con- 
sider it, in fact, so important an element to the success of the 
surgeon in severe and formidable operations, by preventing all 
shock to the systen, that I think he ought to decline any opera- 
tion of magnitude and danger, should he meet with a refusal on 
the part of the patient to be subjected to its influence. But for- 
tunately there are few who are not only willing, but anxious to 
be soothed by the magic spell which, to the victim, robs surgery 
of nearly ali its terrors, and to the surgeon brings pleasure, from 
tiie knowledge that he inflicts no pain. 

4. I believe that all important surgical operations in private 
practice in this vicinity, are performed under anaesthetic influence, 
and with the results that I have already mentioned. 

6, 1 believe that the medical faculty throughout the civilized 
world, where an8esthesia has been introduced, consider it to be 
one of the greatest boons that has ever been given to suffering 
man ; and believing Dr. Morton to be its discoverer, I trust he 



172 

will receive from the Government a compensation commensurate 
with the immense benefit it has conferred upon the human race. 
I have the honor to be, very respectfully, &c., 

JNO. FRED'K MAY. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a Utter from Alex, H. Steevens^ M. D. 

New York, January 5, 1852. 

Without the slightest knocvledge of Dr. Morton, or of any one 
connected, or claiming to be connected with this discovery, and 
without assuming that he is mainly the discoverer, which 1 yet 
believe, I take leave to state that the claims of scientific discoverers 
to reward is a strong one. 

The community is taxed by patent rights for inventions to the 
amount of many millions annually. The men of science paying 
themselves a part of these taxes, and bringing to light, by their 
unpaid labors, scientific discoveries from which these inventions in 
a great measure take their rise, are left entirely, in this country, 
without any reward whatsoever. In Europe they are rewarded, 
besides that they are supported by salaries attached to their mem- 
bership of scientific institutions. 

In view of these considerations, and looking not only to what 
is just as between science and government, but what is, in a very 
high degree and altogether beyond the appreciation of unlearned 
men, expedient, as respects the interests of the government, 
liberal rewards should be given for unpatented discoveries. 

With very great respect, I am, very truly, your ob't serv't, 

ALEX. H. STEEVENS. 

The Hon. W. H. Bissell. 

P. S. From an official connection with the three great hospitals 
in this city, embracing about 3,000 patients, I am enabled to state 
that anaesthetic agents are generally used in puerperal cases, in 
painful chronic diseases, in the reduction of fractures and disloca- 
tions, and in other capital surgical operations, many of which are 
rendered more successful, and not a few only practicable by their 
use. I consider it the greatest discovery in medicine since that 
of Jenner. It is to the healing art, what steam navigation, electro- 
magnetism, and railroad travelling, are to commercial and social 
communications. 

A. H. S. 



173 



Extract of a htttr Jrom Hugh H. McGuire, M. D. 

Winchester, Va. 

1 regard the discovery of ancesthetic agents the most important 
discovery made in Surgery for the last century. It is also en- 
tirely American, for although attempts have been made for a long 
time to destroy sensibility to surgical operations, no approxima- 
tion was made to it, until it was discovered in Boston, that 
sulphuric ether would produce total insensibility. Now it has 
been the practice in all enlightened countries to reward important 
discoveries in a very liberal manner ; I do hope that an American 
Congress will not fail to follow the example. The use of these 
agents have become so common and general throughout Europe, 
that a late distinguished Professor, of Philadelphia, during a visit 
to Europe, was constantly asked, if it was possible any surgeons 
in America could be found opposed to them. I have no hesitation 
in stating that not only is pain avoided, but many lives saved by 
their use, for the nervous shock, in consequence of serious 
operations, not unfrequently ends in death. This is avoided by 
anaesthesia. * *= * 

It v/ould be just and proper to make him a liberal pension for 
it. It would not only be an incentive and stimulus to further 
discoveries in this extensive field of sience, but redound to the 
credit of the Government, here and abroad. 

Very truly, your friend, 

HUGH H. McGUIRE, 

Hon. Chas. J. 5'aulkner,. Prof, Surgery. 



Jacob Bigelow, M. D., President of the Academy of Arts and 
Sciences, Professor in Harvard University, and Physician to Mas- 
sachusetts General Hospital, in a letter to Hon. W. H. Bissell, 
says: ^*It is considered by myself, and by the more intelligent 
part of my medical friends, as the most important medical dis- 
covery of the present age." 

In an article published in the Medical and Surgical Journal of 
July 7, 1847, he says: ''In the case of Dr. Jackson, if he did 
make the discovery in 1842, as asserted, or even later, he stands 
accountable for the mass of human misery which he has permitted 
his fellovz-creatures to undergo, from the time when he made his 
discovery to the time when Dr. Morton made his. In charity, 
we preler to believe, that, up to the latter period, he had no defi- 
nite notion of the real power of ether in surgery, having seen no 
case of its application in that science." 



174 



Letter from Profetsor Simpson^ the discoverer of Chloroform* 

Edinburgh, J^overnber 19, 1847. 

My Dear Sir : I have much pleasure in offering, for your kind 
acceptance, the accompanying pamphlet. Since it was published 
we have had various other operations performed here, equally 
succesful. I have a note from Mr. Liston, telling me also of its 
perfect success in London. Its rapidity and depth are amazing. 

In the Monthly Journal of Medical Science for Sept ember , I 
have a long article on etherization, vindicating your claims over 
those of Jackson. 

Of course the great thought is that of producing insensibility ; 
and for that the world is, I think, indebted to you, 

I read a paper lately to our society, showing that it was recom- 
mended by Pliny, &c., in old ^imes. 

With very great esteem for you, allow me to subscribe myself, 
Yours very faithfully, 

J. Y. SIMPSON. 

Dr. W. T. G. AioRTON. 



Extract of a letter from J. Parkman, M. i)., of Boston. 

Life may also be saved from the more ready submission of the 
patients to necessary operations_, since they can be assured that 
they are painless. And inasmuch as pain and spasm .do destroy 
life, it is fair to presume that agents relieving these must diminish 
mortalit^^ 

In private practice in this city anaesthetic agents are in univer- 
sal use in all surgical operations, and also in all the operations of 
midwifery . They are in quite general use in all diseases requir- 
ing an antidote to pain and spasm, as one of the means to allay 
them, and some practitioners use them in all cases of child-birth. 

I remain, very respectfully, 

J. PARKMAN, 
One of the Surgeons of the Jdass. Gen. Hospital. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from S. D. Townsend, M. D., of Boston. 

It has been used almost daily for diseases of a spasmodic and 
painful character, and in all surgical operations, with the effect 
of relieving pain and annihilating perfectly all suffering in surgi- 
cal operations. I believe it diminishes mortality, by relieving 
spasmodic diseases, and preventing the severe shock of surgical 
operations. In private practice it has been used to the same ex- 



175. 

tent, and in the same classes of cases, and with the same result as 
occurring in the Massachusetts General Hospital, with the addi- 
tion of cases of midwifery, in which it prevents the sensation of 
pain, without retardina^ delivery. 

Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

S. D. TOWNSEND, 
One of the Surgeons of the Mass. Gen. Mospital. 



Extract of a letter from S. Mason Warren, M. I)., of Boston. 

Sulphuric ether and strong chloric ether, are used at the Mas- 
sachusetts General Hospital. Chloroform is not used. 

The above substances are used in almost every surgical operation, 
and in many diseases attended with severe pain. I have seen 
them exhibited in more that two thousand cases, including hospi- 
tal and private jDractice, and never with any bad result. By pre- 
venting the severe shock to the system in surgical operations, it 
is probable that they have an influence in diminishing mortality. 
In surgical operations in private practice, I have used the chloric 
and sulphuric ethers, principally the former ; also in many obste- 
tric cases, and to relieve suffering in painful diseases, often as a 
subslitue for opium ; and I believe them to be used by most other 
practitioners of Boston and the vicinity, for the same purposes, 
and with a satisfactory result. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

S. MASON WARREN, 
One of the Surgeons of the Mass. Gen. Hospital. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from John Ware, M. D., of Boston. 

Their most important use is in the practice of midwifery. 
They are employed very generally in severe, protracted, and dan- 
gerous cases. My belief is, from my own experience, and from 
the concurrent testimony of all practitioners with whose opinions I 
am conversant, that they not only diminish, and sometimes anni- 
late, the suffering which is attendant on parturition, but that they 
lesson also the dread of it, which is so strong a feeling in the 
minds of females ; and further, that they render patients less 
liable to the subsequent ill effects of severe labors, especially 
those in which the use of instruments are necessary. 

I have employed or seen them employed in asthma, in croup, 
in convulsions of children and adults, in neuralgia, in the spas- 



i^ 



176 

modic affections of fever, and in many other cases of a more in- 
definite character, into the description of which it is not now ne- 
cessary to your purpose to enter. I have also employed them 
with signal advantage to ajleviate the sufferings which occur to- 
ward the close of life, or in the act of death, in patients who 
have irrecoverable diseases. 

Their introduction is regarded by all practitioners within my 
circle of acquaintance, whose opinions I should regard as of value, 
as the most important discovery in practical medicine and sur- 
gery which has been made since that of vaccination by Dr. 
Jenner. 

I am, very respectfully, vour obedient servant, 

JOHN WARE. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL, 



Extract of a letter from J. S. Jones ^ M. D,^ of Boston. 

In the private practice in my vicinity the use of these anaes- 
thetic agents is quite common in dentistry, in midwifery, and 
scarcely any operation of surgery is performed without its use. 
The reduction of dislocations and the adaptation of fractured 
bones, are materially aided by the effects of ether, besides the 
freedom from suffering enjoyed by the injured person when under 
its effects. 

Respectfullv, yours, 

J. S. JONES. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from Z. B. Adams , M. D.j of Boston. 

It is almost uniformly used, both in public and private practice, 
in dentistry, in midwifery, and in all surgical operations ; also to 
cause muscular relaxation in the reduction of hernia ; has been 
eminently successful in cases of convulsions after delivery, and 
in alleviating excruciating pain caused by the passage of calculi 
through the ureters. It is an exceedingly rare thing to hear of 
of any dangerous or even serious effects from the use of either 
ether or chloroform. The good effects are almost incalculable. 
Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

Z. B. ADAMS. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



177 



Extract from a letter written by Dr, John Jeffries, Physician 
to the Massachusetts General Hospital. 

For my opinion of the benefits bestowed upon the wofld by 
Dr. Morton, please allow me to refer you to a note addressed by 
me to the Hon. R. G. Winthrop : 

*' Dr. Morton, who visits Washington to seek some remunera- 
tion from Government for the benefit which he has conferred 
upon the country by the introduction of sulphuric ether, requests 
me to express to you my opinion (which I do most unreservedly) 
that the world is indebted entirely to Dr. Morton for the intro- 
duction of this agent to produce insensibility to pain, and that it 
is a physical blessing not second to any that has been conferred 
upon suffering humanity. 

^^ I sincerely hope that Dr. Morton will receive some remuner- 
ation for his very great benefaction. 

" With high respect, your obedient servant, 

JOHN JEFFRIES. 
"Hon. R. C. Winthrop, 

" Speaker of the House of Representatives.^^ 



Oliver W. Holmes, the distinguished poet, and a physician to 
the Massachusetts General Hospital, held the following language 
in an opening address of the Medical College, Boston : 

"' The knife is searching for disease, — the pulleys are dragging 
back dislocated limbs, — nature herself is working out the primal 
curse, which doomed the tenderest of her creatures to the sharp- 
est of her trials ; but the fierce extremity of suffering has been 
steeped in the waters of forgetfulness, and the deepest furrow in 
the knotted brow of agony has been smoothed forever." 

Again, in a communication to the Hon. Isaac E. Morse, he 
says: 

" It is a notorious and wholly undisputed fact that Dr. Morton 
in person instituted the first decisive experiments, at the risk of 
his reputation, and with a courage and perseverance, without 
which, even had the idea of the possibility of such effects been 
entertained, the world might have waited centuries or indefinitely 
before the result was reached. 

*' It is well known that Dr. Morton, instead of profiting by his 
discovery, has suffered in mind, body and estate, in consequence 
of the time and toil he has consecrated to it. 
12 



■m 



178 

"I have no particular relations with Dr. Morton^ and no inter- 
est in common with him to hias me in my opinion and feelings. 
But, remembering what other countries have done for their public 
benefactors, and unwilling to believe that a rich and prosperous 
republic cannot ajfford and will not incline to indulge its gratitude 
whenever a proper occasion presents itself, I have addressed you 
this line to tell you that I think now is the time and this is the 
man. 

"O. W. HOLMES." 

'' Hon. Isaac E. Morse." 



Extract of a Utter from Geo. B, Loring, M. D., Salem, Mass. 

It is one month since I had charge of the Marine Hospital, 
Chelsea, Massachusetts ; and any statement based on personal 
experience, must be founded upon my practice there. 

In all operations, in all painful natural processes, in all diseases 
attended with great local sniFering, the intelligent and philan- 
thropic physician avails himself of the great blessing. And 
while so much suffering is relieved, it cannot be doubted — in fact 
it is satisfactorily proved that mortality attending these operations^ 
precesses and diseases, is materially diminished. 

As the interrogatories addressed to me have grown out of a* 
inquiry into the "claims of Wm. T. G. Morton, of Boston, to 
the merit of the discovery," it may be proper to state to the 
committee that its credit has been from the earliest date, almost 
universally accorded to Dr. Morton, by those of the profession 
who have given it their careful investigation. During its de- 
velopement, the surgeons and officers of the Massachusetts Gen- 
eral Hospital examined it merits, under the special guidance of 
Dr. Morton, and with a full recognition of his sole agency in the 
practical experiments which were leading to its establishment. 
And now that those events have passed into history, the Historiae 
of the hospital records as a fact, fixed by all reliable testimony, 
that Dr. MortCn is the discoverer. 

It should be borne in mind that this is the verdict of the im- 
mediate locality in which the discovery was made ; and any recog- 
nition from abroad of Dr. Jackson's claims to it is no more than 
should be expected from the scientific world, towards any perti- 
nacious and untiring claimant, holding his high position, be the 
claims true or false. 

GEO. B. LORING. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



179 



Extract from a letter written hy Dr. Francis Boott, of London, 

I was much interested in the discussion of the ether question, 
and entirely agree with you in your conclusioti. I should say, as 
in the case of the yacht-race, " Morton is first, and Jackson no- 
where.^^ I am glad to find you are making a gallery of portraits 
of your benefactors and distinguished medical men, and Morton's 
should be among them. I still hope Congress will reward him. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from S. Paris, M. D., of Greensboro^ 

Alabama. 

The medical faculty appreciate it highly, and seem at a 
loss to know how they would practice without it, nor could a 
man be sustained by his medical brethren or the community, who 
would refuse to use it. In fine, it is to the medical profession 
the greatest discovery of modern times, hardly excepting quinine. 

Very respectfully, 

S. PARIS. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from James Jiyer, M. D., of Boston. 

The cases in whieh they are more especially employed, are in 
nearly all surgical operations where suffering is an attendant ; in 
surgical diseases generally painful, and frequently protracted. 
They are also used in diseases of a spasmodic character, as 
cholera, cramps, colic, asthma, and in rheumatism and neuralgia. 
A great variety of cases in midwifery, as well as hysteria and 
convulsions, and many other painful diseases which might be 
added to this list, are very essentially relieved by these remedies. 
Your obedient serva»it, 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. JAMES AYER. 



E3>traet of a letter from P. M. Crane, M. D., of East Boston. 

In nearly all the operations of surgery which are likely to be 
attended with pain, either chloric ether, sulphuric ether, or chlo- 
roform, are used. So uniform is the belief in their utility, that 
no surgeon at the present time would do without them. In ob- 



xoO 

stetric practice they are also extensively used where cases occur 
requiring instrumental interference, but are not much employed 
in natural labor. 

With much respect, 

P. M. CRANE. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from Joh^ H. Dix. M. D., of Boston 

In ail painful operations -upon the globe ol the eye and its ap- 
pendages, these agents afford incalculable relief, both physically 
and mentally. The severe operations upon the internal texture 
of the globe of the eye, not in themselves painful, but requiring 
for their satisfactory performance absolute immobility of the 
organ, these agents insure what, in young subjects especially, 
was heretofore only approximated to. 

In the few operations of ophthalmic surgery which endanger 
life, I find from the use of these agents a diminished tendency to 
inflammatory action within the cranium, and therefore iess hazard 
to life. In aural surgery, though not frequently required, anses- 
thetic agents are of great value, chiefly in the removal of morbid 
growths from the external or internal ear. I believe that no 
other discovery in the whole range of medicine and surgery, 
(with the exception, perhaps, of vaccination,) has in the same 
time contributed so much to relieve suffering and prolong life. 
Yours, respectfully, 

JOHN H. DIX. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL, 



Extract of a letter frorii John Appleton. M. D., West Kewhurg, 

Mass, 

I have lately observed good effects follow the inhalation of chlo- 
roform during a paroxysm of severe suffering from dysmenorrhcea, 
in which relief was almost instantaneous. 

It is, however, in obstetric practice that I have most frequently 
used these valuable agents, and I regard their usefulness in thtt 
jelation, as among the most valuable results of their discovery. 
Respectfully, yours, &c., 

JOHN APPLETON. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



181 



Extract of a letter from Z. B. Morse^ M. D., Boston, Mass, 

They are used in most cases of important or capital surgery, 
in many cases of delirium tremens, tetanus, and similar neuralgic 
diseases, and in dental surgery ; also, by some of our medical 
practitioners in common use in midwifery. 

It diminishes mortality in three ways : 1st. In severe surgical 
operations, by the entire relief from nervous excitability and re- 
action which attend them ; 2d. By giving time for the use of the 
imtfe, and the careful completion of a dangerous operation, in the 
perfect quietude of the patient; 3d. The rest secured by some pa- 
tients in certain neuralgic diseases, which if not attained, death is 
the result. 

I am, sir, your obedient servant, 

L. B. MORSE. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from L. H. AAersoiiy M. D., Sumpterville, 

Alabama > 

I think ansesthetics diminish mortality in two ways : 1st. By 
preventing the shock of pain on the nervous system; 2d. By se- 
curing perfect immobility of the patient, and enabling the surgeon 
to operate more safely and exactly. 

I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

L. H. ANDERSON, M. D. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



Extract of a letter from S. Blanding, M. D., Columbia, S. C 

Its use has induced patients to submit to the knife early, when 
otherwise they would have resulted fatally. 

I consider it one of the most important discoveries of the age 
in mitigating human suffering, and often in saving life. 
I have the honor to be, yours, &c., 

S. BLANDING. 
Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



182 



Extract of a htter from William Ellis, M. B., Oglethorpe, Ga. 

It is my deliberate opinion, founded upon experience, that their 
effects in diminishing mortality is more than fifty to one, for, if 
properly administered, the effect is to take away all fear from the 
patient, and absolutely free the nervous system from irritation, 
and thereby prevent any interruption in the various organs in per- 
forming their functions naturally and of course healthily. 

In private practice its most happy and beneficial effects is in 
obstetrics ; nothing is or can be oif so much value to a woman in 
labor in proportion to the difficulty attending labor; so is its 
benefits, and if in no other, in this class of cases alone, it is the 
greatest discovery in any age of the world for the relief of suf- 
fering humanity ; deprive me of its benefits, and I should almost, 
if not altogether abandon my profession. 

WILLIAM ELLIS. 

Hon. W. H. BissELL. 



MEMORIAL 

OP THE 

SURGEOIS AND PHYSICIANS 

OF THE 

MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL, 

AT BOSTON, 

AND 

MEMBEBS OF THE MASSACHUSETTS MEDICAL SOCIETY, 

IN SUPPORT OP 

THE CLAIM OF W. T, G. MORTON, M. D., 

FOR 

THE DISCOVERY OF ETHERIZATION. 



MEMORIAL. 



To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatwes of 
the United States in Congress assemhkd: 

The undersigned hereby testify to your lionorable body that 
in their opinion Dr. William T. G, Morton first proved to the 
world that ether would produce insensibility to the pain of sur- 
gical operations, and that it could be used with safety. In their 
opinion his fellow-men owe a debt to him for this knowledge. 
Wherefore, they respectfully ask a recognition by Congress of 
his services to his country and mankind. 

JOHN C. WARREN, M. D., Senior Surgeon Massachusetts- 
G-eneral Hospital, and late President American Medical 
Society^ and Emeritus Professor of Anatomy of Harvard 
University, 

GEORGE HAYWARD, M. D., President Massachusetts Medi- 
cal Society, and Surgeon Massachusetts General Hospital, 

S. D, TOWNSEND, M. D., Surgeon Mass. Qen. Hospital 

J. MASON WARREN, M. D., " 

S. PARKMAN, M. D., " " " " 

HENRY J. BIGELOW, M. D., Surgeon Massachusetts Qene- 
ral Hospital, and Professor of Surgery Harvard University, 

HENRY S. CLARK, M. D., Surgeon MassachuseUs General 
Hospital, and City Physician, 

JACOB BIGELOW, M. D., Professor Materia Medica Harvard 
University, and President of the American Academy of 
Arts and Sciences, and Physician to Massachusetts General 
Hospital. 

OLIVER W. HOLMES, M. D., Professor of Matomy, Har- 
vard University^ 



186 

HENRY I. BOY,T}ITCH, M. J),,Fhymian to Mass. aen, Eosp. 
D. HUMPHREYS STORER, M. D., " " " 

M. S. PERRY, M. D., " " " 



JAMES JACKSON, M. D., 
GEORGE C. SHATTUCK, M. D., 
JOHN JEFFRIES, M. D., 
EDWARD REYNOLDS, M. D., 



Consulting Physicians 
and Surgeons Mass. 
Gen. Hospital. 



WALTER CHANNING, M. D., Professor of Midwifery Har- 
vard University. 

JOHN WARE, M. D., Professor Theory and Practice Harvard 
University. 

JOHN HO^IANS, M. D., President Suffolk District Medical 
Society. 

WM. J. DALE, M. D., one of the Trustees 3Iassa^husetts Crene- 
ral Hospital. 

JOHN L. FOX, M. D., Surgeon Naval Hospital, Chelsea. 

WM. ENGxiLLS, Physicia?i and Surgeon, U. S. Marine Hos- 
pital, Chelsea, Mass. 

S. L. ABBOTT, M. D., Admitting Physician Massachusetts 
Greneral Hospital. 

HENRY W. WILLIAMS, M. D., Secretary Suffolk District 
Medical Society. 

M. H. CHIELDS, President Birkhead Medieal College. 

GJE^RG^^A^BETHUNE, \MasBaclmsem CharitaUe Eye 
EDWARD REYNOLDS. j <^rid Ear Infirmary. 



Jlemhers of Massachusetts 3Iedical Society. 

Z. B. Adams, M. D. Augustus A. Gould, M. D. 

John C. Hayden, M. D. Charles Gordon, M. D. 

Ephraim Burke, M. D. Silas Durkee, M. D. 

George Bartlett, M. D. Geo. Stevens Jones, M. D. 

Jonas H. Lane, M. D. Jesse Chicherong, M. D. 

Anson Hooker, M. D. J. A. Larbett, M. D. 

Henry Dyer, M. D. Geo. H. Symane, M. D. 



187 



T. Kandolpli Lincoln, M. D. 
George Dirby, M. J). 
Wavour J. Wliitney, M. D. 
Francis Clienet, M. D. 
Joseph L. Jones, M. D. 
Samuel Kneeland, sr., M. D. 
T, Fletcher Oakes, M. D. 
Geo. Hubbard, M. D. 
Chas. W. Mure, M. D. 
Eichard H. Salter, M. D. 
Fytche Edward Olwein, M. D. 
Wm. Ed. Coale, M. D. 
James W. Stone, M. D. 
B. W. Newell, M. D. 
Francis A. Willard, M. D. 
Wm. Hawes, M. D. 
Charles Mifflin, M. D. 
J. Wippasne, M. D. 
Abm. A. Yfatson, M. D. 
Aaron P. Rhardson, M. D. 
Henry S. Ward, M. D. 
Wm. Bowen Morris, M. D. 
James B. Gregerson, M. D. 
Wm. W. Morland, M. D. 
M. C. Greene, M. "D. 
Horace Stacy, M, D. 
Franklin F. Patch, M. D. 
John H. Oix, M. D. 
James Ayer, M. D. 
Jos. J. Fales, M. D. 
P. Wibrand, M. D. 
Ezra Bartlett, M. D. 
S. F. Parcher, M. D. 
James Hyndman, M. J). 
Henry S. Lee, M. D. 
E. D. Cieaveland, M. D. 
John Stevens, M. D. 
Ira W. Tobie, M. D. 
J. Everette Herrick, M. D. 
N. C. Stevens, M. D. 
Enoch C. Rolfe, M. D. 
Henry Willard, M. D. 
A. Alexander, M. D. 
D. M. Gowan, M. D. 
Saml. Morrill, M. D. 
Alex. S. Butler, M. D. 
Morris Mattson, M. D. 



J. C. Sanburn, M. D. 
Geo. W. Otis, M. D. 
W. Germaine, M. D. 
Jas. B. Forsythe, M. D. 

D. D. Slade, M.D. 

W. E. Townsend, M. D. 
John B. Alley, M. D. 
Geo. H. Gay, M. D. 
Luther Parks, jr., M. D. 
Wm. G. Wheeler, M. D. 

F. H. Gray, M. D. 
James F. Harlow, M. D. 
George Russell, M. D. 
Chas. E. Man, M. D. 

E. W. Blake, M. D. 
Edw. H. Clarke, M. D. 
Samuel Gregg, M. D, 
E. D. Miller, M. D. 

C. G. Putnam, M. D. 
Chas. A. Phelps, M. D. 
John Odin, jr., M. D. 
Joseph Reyndlees, M. D. 
Geo. Hay ward, jr., M. D. 
Henry Osgood Stine, M. D, 

G. Newton Thomson, M. D. 
J. M. Phipps, M. D. 
Abner Phelps, M. D. 
Josiah Curtis, M. D. 

E. D. G. Palmer, M. D. 
Danl. Y. Folts, M. D. 
R. L. Hinckley, M. D. 
J. W. Hinckley, M. D. 
M. B. Souard, M. D. 
P. E. Molloy, M. D. 
Henry Bryant, M. D. 
Chas. E. Buckingham, M. D. 
J. W. Warren, jr., M. D. 

D. D. Smith, M. D. 
George Power, M. D. 
William Read, M. D. 
J. F. W. Lane, M. D. 
Constantino O'Donnell, M. D. 
John S. H. Fogg, M. B. 
Edmund T. Eastman, M. D. 
Jas. M. Smith, M. D. 
Edwin Segan, M. D. 

N. Adams, M. D. 



188 



Benj. B. Appleton, M. D» 
David Thair, M. D. 
A. A. Kettridgue, M. D. 
J. A. Smyth, M. D. 
A. J. Gumming, M. D. 
A. J. Bellows, M. D. 
Thos. Stearns, M. D. 
A. C. Webber, M. D. 
W. W. Wilmington, M. D. 
Chas. F. Foster, M. D. 
A. L. Pierson, M. D. 
William Black, M. D. 
Geo. Choate, M. D. 
W. M. E. Prince, M. D. 
J. a Wood, M. D. 
James Stome, jr., M. D. 
E. Cross, M. D. 
A. S. Adams, M. D. 
J. T. Galloupe, M. D. 
Danl. Perlery, M. D. 

D. A. Johnson, M. D. 

E. Porter Eastman, M. D. 
Henry Clark, M. D. 
Saml. Flagg, M. D. 

Geo. A. Bates, M. D. 
Ch. W. Whitcomb, M. D. 
Joseph Sargent, M. D. 
Ormal Martin, M. D, 
Wm. Workman, M. D. 
John E. Hathaway, M. D. 
A. S. W. Clean, M. D. 
C. C. Chaffer, M. D. 
M. A. Hamilton, M. D. 
David Wills, M. D. 
Danl. Hall, M. D. 
Danl. Howe, M. D. 
Geo. W. Sandburn, M. D. 
Jas. Howarth, M. D. 
J. H. Morse, M, D. 
Henry Viall, M. D. 
N. S. Barnes, M. D. 
0. S. Boot, M. D. 
Frank. A. Cady, M. D. 
0. E. Brewster, M. D. 
Nath'l Foote, M. D. 
Avery Williams, M. D. 
L. S. Mayhew, M. D. 



Johnson Clark, M. D. 
John H. Jennings, M. D. 
Alex. Poole, M. D. 
John Taomy, M. D. 
E. E. Brans, M. D, 
Benj. Seabury, M. D. 
Chas. H. Allen, M. D. 
J. P. Alden, M. D. 
H. L. Chase, M. D. 
E. B. Pierson, M. D. 
Geo. S. Choate, M. D. 
Geo. A. Perkins, M. D. 
H. W. Wheatland, M. D. 
Saml. Johnson, M. D.* 
Edmund A. Holyoke, M. D, 
Seth Gale, M. D. 
James M. Noyes, M. D. 
John Benton, M. D. 
Nathaniel Eiiggles, M. D. 
Chas. M. Weaks, M. D. 
Edward Newland, M« D. 
Bufus Woodward, M. D. 
Henry Sargent, M. D. 
A. S. Gaurlet, M. D. 
V. B. Megnault, M. D. 
Benj. Hayyfood, M. D.. 
Chas. A. Savory, M. D. . 
P. G. Kittridge, M. D. 

C. A, Davis, M. D. 
J. W. Scribner, M. D. 
W. D. Lamb, M. D. 
David Dana, M. D. 
Wm. H. Kimball, M. D. 

D. C. Perkins, M. D. 
A. K Allen, M. D. 

L. F. Humeston, M. D. 
Willard Clough, M. D. 
Clark F. Hall, M. D. 
N. J. Wilson, M. D. 
Alfred Bayles, M. D. 
W. B. Hubbard, M. D. 
Horace Bowen, M. D. 

E. Daevis, M. D. 
Wm. Dickerson, M. D. 
Dan. King, M. D. 
Geo. Leonard, M. D. 
James M. Hartley, M. D. 



189 



Wm. A. Gordon, M. D. 
EHjah Colby, M. D. 
L. D. Stickney, M. D. 
John H. Mackie, M. D. 
Paul Spooner, M. D. 
John 0. Green, M. D. 
Henry Whiting, M. D. 
J. P. Jewett, M. D. 
J. D. PiUsbury, M. D. 
Benj. Skelton, M. D. 
Elisha Huntinton, M. D. 
John W. Graves, M. D. 
Chas. A. Savory, M. D. 
Joel*Spalding, M. D. 
David Wells, M. D. 
Charles A. Davis, M. D. 
Ployer G. Kittredge, M. D. 
Daniel Holt, M. D. 
Daniel Moore, M. D. 
J. W. Scribner, M. D. 
Geo. W. Santom, M. D. 
Wm. t). Lamb, M. D. 
David Dana, M. D. 
J. H. Morse, M. D. 
James Howarth, M. D. 
W. H. Kimball, M. D. 
Thos. R. Boutelle, M. D. 
Levi Pillsbnry, M. D. 
T, W. Wadsworth, M. D. 
W. M. Barrett, M. D. 
Henry M. Li-nrab, 
James L. Hunt, M. D. 
Winslow "\Yarren, M. D. 
Benjamin Hubbard, M. D. 
Timothy Gordon, M. D. 
Jeremy Stimson, M. D. 
D. P. Wight, M. D. 



C. Dennelley, M. D. 
Faster Hooper, M. D. 
E. J. Learned, M. D. 
Elisha Huntington, M. D. 
John W. Graves, M. D. 
Joel Spalding, M. D. 
H. Pillsbury, M. D. 
P. P. Campbell, M. D. 
L. B. Morse, M. D. 
Ezra Stephenson, M. D. 
H. F. Spear, M. D. 
Robert T. P. Fiske, M. D. 
Ebenezer Woodwaad, M. D. 
William G. Pattee, M. D. 
W. Goddard, M. D. 
Andrew Nichols, M. D. 
Joseph Osgood, M. D. 
David A. Grosvenor, M. D. 
George Osgood, M. D. 
James C. Briggs, M. D. 
Chandler Flagg, M. D. 
Daniel Gill, M. D. 
W. C. Boyden, M. D. 
Charles Haddock, M. D. 
Ingalls Kithredge, M. D. 
Isaac P. Smith. M. D. 
C. H, Hildreth, M. D. 
Geo. W. Smith, M. D. 
Benjamin Haskell, M. D, 
Lemuel Gott, M. D. 
Oscar D. Abbott, M. D. 
Henry Bigelow, M. D. 
Cyrus K. Bartlet, M. D. 
Simon Whitney, M. D. 
Allston W. Whitney, M. D. 
Francis Leland, M. D. 
Theodore 0. Cornish, M. D. 



/ 

PETITION 

OF THE 

TRUSTEES OF THE MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL. 



To the Honorable the Senate and House of Representatives in 
Congress assembled : 

The subscribers respectfully represent that they are members 
of the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts General Hospital ; 
that the power of the inhalation of sulphuric ether to produce 
insensibility to pain during sui^gical operations, was discovered by 
experiments instituted in this hospital by Dr. William T. G. Mor- 
ton, and that in their opinion he is entitled to a liberal national 
reward for the service thus rendered to the country and to man- 
kind. 

N. I. Bowditch, Wm. J. Dale, 

John P. Bigelow, Ed. Wigglesworth, 

W. S. BuUard, Charles H. Mills, 

Francis C. Lowell, J. Thos. Stevenson, 

Thomas Lamb, G. A. Shaw. 

Amos A. Lawrence, 
Boston, November 22, 1851. 



TESTIMONY 



ESTABLISHING 



THE CLAIM OF WILLIAM T. G. MORTON, M. ©., 



ETHEE DISCOVERY 



TESTIMONY, &c, 



Boston, March 25, 1847. 
I, Grenville G. Hayden, of BostoD, in the county of Suffolk, 
and State of Massachusetts, dentist, on oath depose and say- 
That about the last of June, 1846, Dr. William T. G. Morton In June, 
called upon me at my office, No. 23 Tremont Row, and stated ^^^t^/Z/^i't 
to me that he wished to make some arrangements with me tlmi/ore Doctor 
would relieve him from all care as to the superintendence of those Jackson's 
employed by him in making teeth, and all other matters in his ^^/j°«^ °^^'^ 
office. He stated, as a reason for urging me to superintend hisgl^^io^^^^l 
affairs in bis office, that he had an idea in his head, connected him,) Dr. 
with dentistry, which he thought '^ would be one of the greatest ?^^^*/^° ^®" 
things ever known," and that he wished to perfect it, and give gagecT^^fn 
liis whole time and attention to its development. Being extremely pursuit of 
urgent in the matter, I made an engagement with him the same ^^'^^ deside- 
day, according to his request. I then asked him what his ^* secret" makes a 
was. "Oh," said he, "you will ktiow in a short time." I still contract 
insisted upon knowing it, and he finally told me the same night -3^*'^ ^^• 
—to wit, the night of the last day of June, 1846, aforesaid— that ^^e dTargo 
^•it was something he had discovered which would enable him to of his busi- 
extract teeth without pain." I then asked him if it was not what n^ss, in or- 
Dr. Wells, his former partner, had used; and he replied, '*' No ! ^^^J^ J^^^^^^^® 
nothing like it;" and, furthermore, "that it was something that might (giv& 
neither he nor any one else had ever used." •He then told me he ^^^ whole 
Lad already tried it upon a dog, and described its effects upon ^"'^^.^^^«^^^- 
Mm, which (from his description) exactly correspond with the its develop- 
effects of ether upon persons who have subjected themselves to me?it.'-See 
its iniiuence, under my observation. All this happened in June, ^^q^^*** 
1846. He then requested me not to mention what he had com- spear ' p. 
municated to me. - 219; Whit- 

About a month after this, or the 1st of August, 1846,* Dr. ^ll'f{P'^' 
Morton Sf^ked me where he could get some pure ether, and asked 222 • ' ^* 
me to go to Joseph Burnett's apothecary shop, and purchase a Wightman, 
four ounce vial full of ether, which he said he wished to carry P- ^^^5 ^^^^ 
home with him, he being about to leave town for Needham, p ' ^99,^°^' 
where he then resided. And about the same time he explained Dana, ' p.' 
to me the nature and effects of ether, and told me, that if he ^^^' 
could get any patient to inhale a certain quantity of ether gas, it 
would cause insensibility to the pain of extracting teeth, and he 

* Statement by Morton, i?i June, 1846, as to his experiment on a dog. — Pur- 
chase of ether. — Disclosure, in August, 1846, of the fact that ether was the agent 
with which he was experimenting. 
13 



194 

See Lea- tried to induce me to take it. Dr. Morton said he had breathed 
^^d' Wl?t-^^ himself, and it would do no harm; and he at the same time 
mac. tried to induce three young men in the office to take the gas. 

This was in August, 1846. He was continually talking about 
his discovery to me. From the time I engaged with Dr. M., as 
aforesaid, he frequently stated to me that he had nearly perfected 
every department in dentistry, save extracting teeth without pain, 
and that he was determined to accomplish that also. But to- 
wards the last of September following, he intimated to me that, 
in some particulars, his discovery did not work exactly right, 
and, in my presence, was consulting his books to ascertain some- 
thing further about ether. 
Advised Upon this I recommended him to consult some chemist on the 
i)y Hayden subject. Dr. Morton then sent Francis Whitman to see if Dr. 
mmv^S^' '^^^^son was at home, but Francis returned and said that Dr. J. 
to coiisnit"a was not at home. The next day, however, which was about the 
chemist, last of September, 1846, J)r. M. said that he had that day seen 
ro^hS^visIt^^- Jackson, and derived from him a hint hj which Dr. M. 
toDr.Jack- thought he eould remove the only remaining difficulty. Dr. M. 
son, Sept. said that, in his interview with Jackson, the subject of nitrous 
SO, 1846. — Q.^j^g gas and of ether gas, and atmospheric air, was freely 
therefore, ' talked of, as having an effect on the imagination of the patient, 
that many and various experiments which had been tried v>^ith these gases 
suggestions q^ students at Cambridge college ; also the experiments of Dr. 
ttm made Wells and himself together, with the nitrous oxide gas ; but that 
or many he withheld from Dr. Jackson the fact that he had been experi- 
/mii.t ?a/'«« ijiej^ting on ether gas before. The same day Dr. Morton told 
without in- ^^^ ^^"'^^ ^^^ ^^^ j^^^ tried ether again — in accordance with Jack- 
validating son's hint — on himself, and that he had remained insensible seven. 
the claim of QY eight minutes by the watch. 

'^considlled '^^^ ^^^^ successful experiment upon any patient was made 

as the au- September 30, 1846, by inhaling ether through a folded cloth, 

thor of the and on that occasion a tooth was extracted without pain. We 

xnvention.- |.j.jgj repeated experiments with the same means subsequently,. 

Patents, and they all resulted in total failures. Dr. M. said that Dr. 

sec. 47. Jackson recommended a certain apparatus, which he lent Dr. 

^ Morton from his laboratory, consisting of a glass tube of equal 

tificate of size throughout, having a neck, and being about three feet long. 

Prost, the This was likewise a total failure. So far, all our experiments, 

patient, p. -^Jth one exception, proving abortive, we found that a different 

apparatus must be obtained ; and it was at this time that Dr. M. 

procured from Mr. Wightman, of Cornhill, a conical glass tube, 

with which, by inserting a sponge saturated with ether in the 

larger end, we had better success, and our experiments began to 

assume a more promising aspect. 

Still, our success was not uniform, and far from perfect. At 
this time Dr. M. suggested that our failures might be owing to 
the fact that, in all our experiments so far, the patient had 



195 

breathed the expired vapor back into the vessel, thus inhaling 
the same over and over. He then stated that the expired air 
should pass off into the surrounding atmosphere, and wished me 
to make a pattern for an apparatus by which the air should pas-s 
into the vessel, combine Avith the ether, be inhaled into the lungs, 
and the expired air thrown off into the room. The idea, as thus 
forced upon him, and communicated to me, vras fully elaborated, 
and corresponds most accurately with the apparatus now in use 
in this country and in Europe, and for which Dr. M. has applied 
for letters patent. I replied that he had explained his idea so 
clearly that he would have no difficulty in directing a philosophi- 
cal instrument maker to manufacture a proper inhaler at once, 
without a pattern, and recommended to him Mr. Chamberlain, 
in School street, to whom he applied accordingly, and who made, 
as thus desired, the first inhaler. And, v/ith such an apparatus, 
we have had almost uniform success to this day — the results of 
which are known to the world. 

And I will here state that, on the evening of the oOth of Sep- ^i^.^^^*^?S 
teraber, after the first experiment had been made w^ith success, jackson's 
Dr. Morton spoke about going to the hospital and using the ether statement 
there, and thus bring out the new discovery. After several other ^^^* he had 
successful experiments, the question came up anew, how to intro- Morton^^to 
duce it to the vf orld, when Dr. M. stated that Dr. Jackson had the hospi- 
declined to countenance it, or aid in bringing it out, and then he*^^* 
(Dr. M.) said he would see Dr. Warren, and have his discovery 
introduced into the Massachusetts General Hospital. He v/ent 
out and soon returned, stating that Dr. W. had agreed to afford 
him an opportunity to apply the vapor, as soon as practicable, in 
the hospital. 

For more than four weeks alter our first experiment, it v/as See ChaDd- 
well understood, and often spoken of in the office, that Dr. Jack- ^^' ^-^^^ ' 
son repudiated all share, pretence of, or interest in, the discovery, p,' ggg f 
He was never in Dr. M.^'s office during all our experiments, to Gould, p. 
my knowledge, until the 21st of October, and I never knew that ^^^ ^ (6tb 
Dr. M. advised vrith Dr. J. as much as with many others, or in rI^h. Eddy 
fact but once. p. 897. 

GRENYILLE G. HAYDEN. 

In corroboration of the statements as to the connection Dr. 
Morton formed with Dr. Hay den and his object in forming it, see 
Mr. Dana's letter to Mr. Bowditch, one of the trustees, and 
that of his kinsman, Francis Dana, jr., M. D., taken from the 
trustees' report. 

30 Court Street, January 8, 1848. 
My Dear Sir: On the 30th June, 1846, Dr. W. T. G. Mor- See Hay; 
ton came to my office, in company with Dr. G. G. Hayden, to ^^°^P*-^^^' 
have a contract drawn, the object of which was to provide, that 



196 

Dr. Haydeii skouid take the entire charge of Dr. Morton's busi- 
ness for a time, in order that Dr. M. might be able to give his 
attention to something else. Dr. Morton did not state what it 
was that he was engaged upon ; but my impression, founded on 
my own recollection alone, is very strong, that he said it was 
something of great importance, Vvhich, if successful, would revo- 
lutionize the practice ot dentistry. I am entirely confirmed in 
thrs impression by Dr. F. Dana, whose note en the subject I 
enclose. It was agreed that I should keep the instrument, and I 
have it now before me. It bears date June 30, 1846, and was 
to take effect the next day. The charge in my account books 
for drawing the contract is of the same date. 

Truly your friend and servant, 



RICHD. H. DANA, Jr. 



-NaTHAXIEL I. BOWDITCH, EsQ. 



Jaivuary 10, 1848. 

Jv'o^e enclosed in tke preceding. — Dear Sis : During the sum- 
mer of 1846, in the course of a conversation on the subject of 
dentistry, you mentioned to me that Dr. Morton had told you he 
was engaged upon something of great consequence, which would 
revolutionize the practice of dentistry. This conversation was 
during the extreme hot weather of that summer, a long time 
before the discovery of the effect of ether, in producing insensi- 
bility during operations, was announced ; I should say, so w^ell as 
I can judge, betv%'een two and three months. 

FRAS. DANA, Jr. 

To R. H. Dana, Jr. 



I, William P. Leavitt, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, dentist, of lawful age, being 
first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by 
Richard 'H. Dana, jr., Esq., counsel for William T. G. Morton. 

1st. Where is your residence ? how long has it been so ? what 
is your occupation, and how long have you followed it ? 

Arts, I reside in South Boston ; my place of business is 23 Tre- 
mont row, in Boston ; I have been in business there nearly four 
years ; I am a dentist, and it is about six years since I commemted 
to learn the business ; I have been in the practice of it nearly four 
years. 

2d. Did you study dentistry under Dr. Morton ? When ? 



197 

Ans. I commenced studying dentistry with Dr. Morton in 
March, 1S46, I helieve, and was there nearly three years. 

3d. Do you recollect Dr. Grenville G. Hayden ? When did he 
come into Dr. Morton's otnce, and in what capacity ? 

Alls, I do recollect him ; he came into Dr. Morton's office the 
last of June, 1846, as a practitioner of dentistry. 

4th. After Dr. Hayden came, w^ho had the chief control of the 
dental business of the office ? 

Ans. Dr. Hayden. 

5th. How much, if anything, did Dr. Morton himself do, in the 
dental department, after Dr. Hayden came ? How had it been 
before ? 

Ans. I could not say that he did anything after Dr. Hayden 
came ; Dr. Morton superintended the business in that department 
before he came. 

6th, Do you recollect Dr. Morton's saying anything to y©ii or 
the other students, about taking out teeth without pain? If yea, 
please state all the circumstances of the first occasion. 

Ans» I don't know that I heard him say anything about it mitil This was 
be came into the office at one time and said, " I've got it." This ^p^ore ^ the 
was in the back oiBce ; he came in from his front office, where his with T'a^ck- 
library was, and where he operated, not from out of doors, when son. See 
he said this : he came into the back office ; his place of business ^elow. See 
was No. 19 Tremont row ; it was up one flight of stairs ; he had ^!^^J ^^^ 
two rooms upon that floor ; out of the front room there was a Wightman, 
small operating room ; in this small room was where he operated ; 
the front room was used for a receiving room principally ; this 
small room corJd be closed perfectly from the noise ; the back 
room w-as used for a laboratory, and for an operating room ; the 
doctor came in from his front office into the back office, in an 
animated sort of a way and said "I've got it;" he said "T shall 
take my patients into the front room, extract their teeth, take 
them into the back room, put in a whole set and send them off 
without their knowing it." That is all which I recollect on that 
occasion. 

'7th. Was this before or after Dr. Hayden came? How much 
so ? Do you remember the occasion vfhen a man named Eben 
Frost had his tooth pulled out ? Was this conversation before or 
after that, and how long ? 

Ans. This was after Dr. Hayden came, I think, but am not 
positive ; I can't say how near it was to that time ; it must have 
been after Hayden came, because I was absent in the country 
when he came, and this conversation took place after my return ; 
I do remember the occasion when a man by the nam^e of Eben 
Frost had his tooth pulled out ; this conversation w^as before that 
time, some days, and I should think some weeks, but I am not 
positive how long before. 



198 

8tli. What did you first know Dr. Morton to say or do about 
ether? State ail you recollect, in its order, with ail the circum- 
stances. 
Experi- Ans . The first which I heard of ether was immediately after 
©rMorton^^y return from the country. It was the Jst of July, 1846: The 
with ether, first I heard, I believe, was when I was sent after some to Brewer, 
in July, Stevens & Cushing. I heard Dr. Morton ask Dr. Hayden where 
1846. YiQ could procure some pure ether ; this was in the back office. 

P. 148. Hayden told him that he could get it probably at Brewer, Stevens 
& Cushing's, on Washington street. He then spoke to me, and 
asked me to go dovrn, take a demijohn and gQt it filled, and be 
careful and not let them knovr who it w^as for. I went down and 
bought the ether, and to make sure, I told him to make the bill 
for the ether out in the name of some man in the country. I for- 
get what name I gave him. He did do it, and gave it to me, and 
I returned to Dr. Morton ; I gave the ether to him. Soon after 
that he sent me to Dr. Gay's, to ask him if ether would dissolve 
India rubber; I went, and did not find the place and returned. 
Dr. Morton sent Frank W'^hitman, his brother-in-law, to Dr. 
Jackson's, [but Whitman told me that he did not find Dr. Jack- 
son.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as hearsay. J. P. P.) 
9th. Did you hear Dr. Morton send Mr. Whitman to Dr. Jack- 
son? if yea, what m.essage did you give? 

Ans. I did hear him. He asked him to ascertain from Dr. 
Jackson, if ether would dissolve India rubber. 

10th. What Y\'as the next you saw or knew Dr. Morton to do, 
about ether? 
Further Ans, The next I heard of it, he sent me and Thomas R. Spear 
D^°M ^?^* ^^ ^^^ ^ ^^^ ^^ h.^YQ a tooth extracted, under the influence of 
did not de- the ether. He told me he would give me five dollars if I would 
rive his find a man to take the ether and have a tooth extracted. I went 
idea from ^^^ ^,,-^]^ Thomas R. Spear for that purpose, but I did not find 
son. (See ^ne ; I went down on the wharves. City wharf and Faneuil Hall 
ans. to 23d market. He wanted a big Irishman, he said, a full, robust man, 
question.) f^ ^Jjom he could give a good quantity. I returned, and reported 
so to Dr. Morton. Before this, he had tried to induce me to in- 
hale the ether. He asked me to take it, and said it was perfectly 
harmless, that he had taken it himself. I declined doing it. He 
tried to hire Spear to take it in my presence. Dr. Morton offered 
him some money. It was five or eight dollars. Spear said he 
would take it, at the time, I believe, but afterwards concluded 
not to. 

11th. Did you and Spear finally take the ether? If yea, de- 
scribe all the circumstances. 

Ans, We did take it. Spear took it first. It was in Dr. Mor- 
ton's little room, out of the front room, where he kept the ether. 



199 

ton's littk room, out of the front room, where he kept the ether. 
It was near the evening. Dr. Morton had gone out of town to 
his place of residence, Needham. We both of us took it at this 
time. Spear said he had taken what he supposed to be the same, 
at the Lexington Academy, something like exhi-larating gas. We 
inhaled it from a sponge in the inhaler. 

12th. State what you know of Mr. Eben Frost's having his 
tooth pulled out. 

Ans. The first I knew ^f it was in the morning after ; I heard 
them talking about it in the office. 

13th. Was this the first case of a patient inhaling ether to your 
knowledge ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

14th. After this case, did others do so? how soon after? how 
many? 

Ans. Others did so immediately after. I recollect soon after, 
before Dr. Morton had got his apparatus completed, he attempted 
to give it to a young lady. Her name was Whitemore, of Cam- 
bridge, daughter of Rev. Mr. Whitemore. I recollect that as 
soon as he had got the apparatus completed there was enough of 
them. 

15th. How soon was the case of Miss Whitemore after Frost's 
case? how soon after Frost's case did he get his apparatus com- 
pleted ? 

Ans, I should think Miss Whitemore's case was two or three 
days after the Frost case. It might have been more. It might 
have been less. I should think it v/as a week or more after Frost's 
case that he got his apparatus completed. There were a number 
of different kinds of apparatus prepared by him before he got the 
one which came into general use, the sponge. We used some 
kind of an apparatus|when we gave it to Miss Whitemorer 

16th. Are you sure that you and Spear inhaled the ether through 
an inhaler ? 

Ans, I am not positive. 

17th. State the best of your recollection about this. 

Ans, I don't know that it is proper to call it an inhaler. It 
was a small tube, perhaps four inches long, in which we placed a 
sponge and inhaled it from the sponge. The tube was four or 
six inches long, of uniform size, in the shape of a tin cup. It 
stood on the shelf The sponge was in it. We took it down and 
inhaled the ether from the sponge. 

18th. Are you sure it was ether that Dr. Morton asked you ^^g^ 
and Spear to take ? Could it have been nitrous oxide gas ? 

Ans, I am sure it was ether. It could not have been nitrous 
oxide gas. 

19th. Are you sure it was ether that he sent you to Dr. Gay, 
Whitman, and Dr. Jackson, to make the inquiries about as to its 
melting India rubber ? 



200 

Ans. Yes, sir. 
^^ 20th. What kind of ether was it? 

Ans, It was sulphuric ether. 

21st. When did you go into the country, and when return that 
summer, as you have said ? 

Ans. I went into the country after the middle of June, and 
returned the 3d day of July. It was the last of June, because 
I was summoned to attend the Court of Common Pleas in Con- 
cord, Massachusetts, and was detained there nearly a week ; that 
was the occasion of my absence. 

22d. How soon after your return was it that Dr. Morton made 
the inquiries about getting ether, and asked you and Spear to 
take it ? How do you know they were before Frost's case ? 

Ans, I could not say ; I should think it was some time after. 
Frost's case did not occur till cool weather ; it was in September, 
I think. My getting of the ether was the last of July or the 
iirst of August. 

23d. At the time you were asked to take ether, and were sent 
down on the wharves to get a man, had Frost's case occurred t 
If it had, would you recollect it ? Were any attempts made to 
get any other than patients to use it after Frost's case ? 

Ans. Frost's case had not occurred at that time ; if it had oc- 
curred, I should recollect it. No attempts were made, to my 
knowledge, to get any other than patients to take it after Frost's 
case. 

24th. How many persons had Dr. Morton in his establishment 
in the summer of 1846 ? 

Ans. Dr. Hayden, Francis Whitman, Thomas R. Spear and 
myself. 

25th. Please look at the affidavit in your name in Report No. 
114, to the 30th Congress, at its second session, beariDg date Fe- 
bruary 28, 1849, at page 73. Is that your affidavit ? Have you 
any change or explanation to make therein ? 

Ans. It is my affidavit ; I have no change or explanation to 
make therein. 

26th. Please look at the affidavits of Henry C. Lord and 
Daniel W. Gooch, on pages 75, 76, 77 and 78 of the same re- 
port. What answer do you make thereto, if any ? 

Ans. My affidavit referred to in my answer to the preceding 
interrogatory is my answer, a copy of which I annex, and make 
part of this my answer. 

(This copy is annexed, marked B. J. P. P.) 

27th. Please look at the affidavit on page 79 of the same re- 
port. Have you any change or explanation to make therein ? 

Ans. I have one which I v/ish to make. I inhaled the ether 
from a sponge ; Spear inhaled it from a handkerchief. 

28th. Please state what the thing from which you took the 
sponge, when you first inhaled the ether, had been used for. 



201 

What had the sponge been used for ? "Why did you use these 
things ? 

Ans. It was a tin cup, or tuhe, as I called it. It ~\vas used to 
keep the sponge in, out of the way, so that we could have it 
handy at any time when we wanted it. The sponge had been 
used for wiping patients' mouths when they w^ere bloody, and 
also for wiping instruments. I used these things because it was 
more conyenient for me 1o hold the sponge than it would have 
been to use the handkerchief. 

29th. Why did you and Spear inhale the ether that evening ? ^^ 
Did you, and when, make any report of the result to Dr, Morton ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton had been asking us frequently to iehale it. 
We did it that evening because we were alone in the office, and 
it was more convenient, I suppose ; I don't know any other 
reason. We reported to Dr. Morton the result the next morn- 
ing. We reported that we had taken ether on the previous ^^ 
evening, and described the effects. Dr. Morton wanted to know 
what the effects were. He asked me particularly how Spear 
behaved ; if he did not fall right away under the influence of it, 
and become unconscious. I told him no ; that he was very much 
excited. He then asked me how it affected me. I told him that 
it made me numb, dull, heavy and stupid. I believe he said that ^^ 
if I had taken a little more I should have become unconscious, so 
that I could have had an operation performed, and not have felt 
the pain. I don't recollect his words, but it was something like 
that. 

30th. At the time you so first inhaled the ether, and made 
your report to Dr. Morton, as you have just said, had there been 
any case, to your knowledge, or had you heard of any particu- 
lar case in which teeth had been extracted, or surgical operations 
performed, under the operations of ether ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

31st. When Dr. Morton told you, as you have just said, that 
if you had inhaled more you would have been insensible, did 
you, or not, credit him ? Had you any reason for crediting him 
except his own statement of his opinion or belief? 

(Objected to, as not evidence of any fact, but opinion of v/it- 
ness. J. P. P.) 

Ans. All the reason which I had for crediting him, was his 
opinion or belief. I knew nothing of these effects of ether be- 
fore. I thought it v/as correct, as it affected me in such a man- 
ner. This was the first time I knew of its being used in the 
office, and Spear was the first one I ever saw inhale it. 

32d. When Dr. Morton came into the back office and ex- 
claimed, " I have got it now," &c., as you have said, had you ^£^ 
any knowledge or suspicion at that time what agent he was 
using or referred to ? 

Ans, No, sir. 



202 

33cl. At that time had your attention been called to ether in 
any way in the office, as to inhaling it, or its effects on the 
system ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

34th. When you went to Brewer, Stevens & Cushing's, for 
•ether, did you know ox suspect, and if so, how far, for vfhat pur- 
pose Dr. Morton wanted it? 

(Objected to, as inquiring of the knowledge or suspicion of wit- 
ness. 'J. P. P.) 

Ans. I did not know what he wanted of it, nor suspect it. 

35th. When you went down to the wharves with Spear to 
find a man for the experiment, did you at that time know, or 
had you heard of any particular case in which teeth had been 
actually" extracted, or a surgical operation actually performed, 
under the effect of ether ? 

Ans, No, sir. 

36th. Was there not a time, and how long a time before Frost's 
case occurred, when there was ether, and what kind of ether in 
the office ? How do you know this ? Were there or not, during 
ihis ime, and hov>r much of it, any flasks, rubber bottles, or the 
like ? W^hat was done with them, if anything, in this connection ? 

Ans. I purchased ether some time before Frost's case, of 
Brewer, Stevens & Gushing, and that w^as sulphuric ether ; I pur- 
chased it for the office ; I should think it was two or three weeks 
before Frost's case ; it might have been more ; I know it was sul- 
phuric ether which I inhaled, and that was some time previous to 
Frost's case ; there w^ere, during this time, how much of it I can't 
say, flasks and rubber bottles ; at the time I inhaled it, there were 
a number of them ; I don't know what was done with them; I 
never saw them used. 

37th. \Vhat was your age, in the summer of 1846 ? 

Ans. I was twenty- one. 

oSth. How many books had Dr. Morton in his library, of which 
you have spoken? 

Ans. He had a large quantity of them ; I should think there 
were fifty volumes, or more ; between fifty and a hundred. 

39th. On what subjects were these books ? 

Ans. On different subjects ; he had a great many on dental sur- 
gery, and medical books ; he had books on chemistry, histories, 
biographies, &c. 

40th. Did you or not ever hear Dr. Morton give any message 
to Frank Whitman respecting a book on ether — if. yea, what was 
the message? 

Ans. I heard him ask Whitman to get down a book on che- 
mistry, and see what it said on ether. 

41st. Did he do so ? What else took place ? 

Ans. I could not say whether he did or not ; nothing else took 
place that I remember of. 



203 

42d. At this time had any experiments been performed, or had 
your attention been called to ether ? 

An8. No, sir. 

43d. Is Francis Whitman now living ; if not, when did he die ? 
Where is Dr. Granville G. Hayden ? Where is Thomas R. Spear? 

Ans. Francis Whitman is not now living ; he died in Novem- 
ber, 1847 ; Dr. Hayden is now in San Francisco ; Thomas R. 
Spear is in San Francisco. 

44th. Are you in any way comiected with Dr. Morton by blood, 
marriage or business, or have you had any business relations with 
him since you left his office? 

Ans. No sir. 

4oth. What was Dr. Morton's principal department of dentis- 
try, and what w^as principally done in the laboratory, before the 
time Dr. Hayden came ? 

Ans, Dr. Morton superintended all the business of dentistry be- 
fore Dr. Hayden came ; the principal business done in the labora- 
tory was preparing plates and teeth for the mouth. 

46tli. Were teeth made there, and to what extent? 

Ans. We manufactured there nearly all we used. 

47th. Did any one else than Dr. Morton, to your knowledge or 
belief, have any direction over or advice as to the chemical and 
surgical knowledge necessary for this w^ork ? 

Ans, No, sir. 

Cross interrogatories hy A. Jackson^ jr., Esq,, Counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. W^here is the place of your birth ? What your age ? What 
has been your business before you gave your attention to den- 
tistry ? 

Ans. I was born in Concord, New Hampshire ; I am twenty- 
seven years old ; I was born on the fifth of February, 1825 ; my 
business w^as farming before I gave my attention to dentistry. 

2d. Do you know Dr. C. T. Jackson ? When did you first 
know him ? Wiiere have you seen him ? How often ? 

Ans. I don't know him only by sight ; the first time I ever saw 
him, I saw him in Dr. Morton's office ; I have met him on the 
street a dozen times ; I don't know that I ever saw him in the 
office more than once after the time I first saw him ; I first saw 
him in the ofhce in the fall of 1846 ; I can't fix the exact date ; 
it was after the ether discovery. 

3d. Are you a chemist, or acquainted with chemistry ? What 
is nitrous oxide gas? When did you first know about this gas? 
Describe chloric ether, if you are acquainted with it, and its pro- 
perties ? 



204 

^ns. I am not a chemist, and not much acquainted mih che- 
mistry ; nitrous oxide gas is a gas which is inhaled for amuse- 
ment ; I can't tell when I first knew about this gas ; I should 
think it was in the fall of '4^; that is, when I knew the ef- 
fects of it ; I had read of it previously to that; I am not much 
acquainted with chloric ether. 

4th. How many rooms had Dr. Morton in September and Oc- 
tober, 1846, in No. 19 Tremont row? How could you enter 
them ? Did they open into each other ? 

^ns. Previously to October, he occupied only two rooms on 
the second floor ; after the discovery was completed and we com- 
menced giving ether, he had the whole of the building above the 
second floor, four rooms more than he had before ; only the two 
rooms on the second floor opened into each other, at first. 

5th. Did you work in August and September, in the front or 
back room ? How did you get from the back room into the street ? 
How from the front office into the street ? 

Ans. I worked in the back room ; there was a door opened 
from the back room out into the entry, as also one from the front 
room. 

6th. Hovv- do you know where Dr. Morton came from, when 
you say that he came into the back office, in answer to the 6th 
interrogatory ? 

Ans. There is also a communication from the front room to the 
back room under the stairs ; a person could not come into the 
front room without our knowing it in the back room, because the 
dead-latch was down in the front office, and there was a spring to 
ring a bell ; I know that he came from the front office ; I was the 
youngest student at the time, and it was my business to tend the 
door, and see who went out and who came in. 

7th. Who was in the back room at this time, when, as you 
say. Dr. Morton came in ? Who was in the front room ? 

jlns. I think we were all there : Spear, Whitman, Hayden 
and myself. I don't think any one vras in the^front room. 

8th. How do you know that the latch was down, as you say 
in answer to the 6th cross mterrogatory ? 

Ans. I generally kept it down, as there were offices up stairs, 
and people ran in often, and we had books stolen from the centre 
table. That was the reason w^e kept the dead-latch down. 

9th. Was not the front room the receiving room for all visiters 
and patients ? if not, where did they come in ? 

Jins. No, sir ; not always. The front room was for the sur- 
gical department, and the back room for the mechanical depart- 
ment. Visiters and patients came into both rooms. 

10th. How long had Dr. Morton been in the front room, as you 
say, alone, when he came into the back room ? Had he a key 
to lift the dead-latch of the front room ? Did he usually ring 
when he entered ? 



205 

Ans, I should think he had been in all of the morning. He 
had no key to lift the dead-latch of the front room. He did not 
usually ring when he entered. He usually came into the back 
room. 

11th. What time of day was it when, as jom say, Dr. Morton 
came in ? 

Ans. I should think it was before dinner. I could not say 
how long before. 

12th. You say that Dr= Morton came into the back from his 
front office, on one occasion, and said, "I've got it." '^I shall 
take my patients into the front room," &c., to whom did he say 
this? \¥hat had Dr. Morton in his hands, when as you state, he 
said this ? 

Ans. He said it to no one in particular. I don't know that he 
had anything. I think he went to Dr. Hayden when he came in. 

13th. Had he any bag or tube with him ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that he had. 

14th. What was said by you, or any one, in answer to what, 
as you state, Dr. Morton said on this occasion ? 

Ans. I did not say anything, and don't recollect of anybody 
saying anything. 

loth. How long was Dr. Morton in the back room at this time ? 
Where did he go to from the back room ? 

Ans. I should not think he was there but a very fevf minutes. 
He went back into the front room. 

16th. When Dr. Morton asked Hayden where he could get ether, 
do you recollect the words he used in his inquiry of Dr. Hayden? 
if so, what were those words ? 

Ans. He asked him where he could get pure sulphuric ether. 
Those were the words. 

17th. What sort of a demijohn did you take to Brewer, Stevens 
.& Co. ? How large was it ? When was this ? 

Ans. I should think it held half a gallon. It was a common 
demijohn. This w^as in August, I think, 1846. 

18th. What makes you think it was in August, 1846 ? 

Ans. That was the first which I heard of ether. 

19th. How long after you first heard of ether was it that you 
went to Brewer, Stevens & Co. ? 

Ans. The same day. 

20th. How long was this after the scene you narrated of Dr. 
Morton's coming into the back office saying, " I've got it?" 

Ans. I can't say ; it was after it ; perhaps it was a week. 

21st. Was it a month or two months afier? 

Ans. It was not. 

22d. Have you not stated before that you could not tell ; that 
it might be weeks ? 

Ans. I guess not ; I guess I said days. 



206 

23d. Whom did you see at Brewerp Stevens & Co.'s ? State all 
that took place there. Had you ever been there before ? 

Ans. I can't say any one in particular, because I was not ac- 
quainted with them ; I inquired if they had any sulphuric ether, 
and they told me they had ; I don't know w^hether it was a clerk 
or one of the firm ; I got the ether, and asked them for a bill : 
I gave them a name, what, I don't recollect, and they made out 
a bill ; I can't say how much I bought ; I think I asked him 
how much they would ask for a demijohn full of ether, and I 
think he said he sold it by weight or the pound ; I do not recol- 
lect how much I paid, nor how much I got ; I had never beea 
there before. 

24th. You say in the 8th interrogatory, that Dr. Morton told you 
to be careful and not let Brewer, Stevens & Co. know whom it 
was for. Did he give any reason at the time for being careful, a& 
you have stated it ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

25th. How many demijohns were there in the ofHce ? When 
you went to Brewer, Stevens & Co., were there more than the 
one you took? If there had been, should you have known of it? 

Ans. I could not say ; there might have been more without 
my know^ing it. 

26th. Did you bring the demijohn back ? Where did you put it ? 

Ans. I brought it back and gave it to Dr. Morton. 

27th. What did he do with it? When did you next see it after 
bringing it back ? 

Ans. I don't know what he did with it', I saw it in his little 
operating room, a few days after, it might have been the same 
day ; it was the little room out of the front one. 

28th. How often did you see it in this little room you speak 
of? Was this little room a third room that Dr. Morton then 
bad ? 

Ans. It was there for a long time after ; I saw it every day ; 
it w^as not a third room ; it was a small ante-room, which be- 
longed to the main room, but was partitioned off by him. 

29th. Are you sure that the demijohn spoken of by you was 
not a gallon demijohn ? May it have been a gallon demijohn ? 

Ans. I am not positive that it was not a gallon demijohn ; it 
was not a two gallon one. My impressions are that it was a half 
gallon demijohn. 

80th. Was any use made of this demijohn of ether after it was, 
as you say, put in this ante-room, w^here you saw it every day? 

Ans. I used it, and Spear used the ether out of it ; I do not 
know of any other use. 

31st. After the demijohn of ether was brought to the office, 
was the odor of it perceptible to all persons coming there ? 

Ans. I can't say as to that. 



207 

o2d. Did the odor, after it was brought in the demijohn, so fill 
the office that you always perceived it when you entered ? 

Ans. No, sir, not always ; once in a while we noticed it. 

33d. When did you first see Dr. Morton inhale ether, if you 
ever saw him ? 

Ans, I never saw him. 

34th. After Dr. Hayden came, did, or not, Dr. Morton busy 
himself with plate work for whole sets of teeth ? 

Ans, No, sir ; Di. Morton would not see patients, unless they 
would send their names and business. 

35th. Did you know or hear of any experiments of Dr. Mor- 
ton's, with King's cement, or use by him of this ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

36th. Did you know or hear of any new substance to fill teeth 
with, used or tried by him ? 

Ans. No, sir ; Dr. Morton's work was artificial work, princi- 
pally, in the establishment ; there was very little filling done. 

37th. Did you know of any use or experiments by him of lime 
and alum ? 

Ans. 1^0) sir. 

38th. Did you know or hear of any use by him of chloric ether, 
to deaden the sense of pain in nerves of teeth ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

39th. You have said that Spear and you inhaled ether one eve- 
ning — whether, or not, this evening was after the cold weather 
had begun in the fall of 1846 ? 

Ans. It was in warm weather. 

40th. Was not this evening in October or November, 1846, 
when, as you say. Spear and you inhaled ether ? 

Ans. No, sir ; it was in warm weather. 

41st. How do you fix it in your mind that this was not in Oc- 
tober ? 

Ans. It was after I had purchased the ether of Brewer ; I know 
it was before the Frost case, and that was in September ; and 
after that we all knew the effects of ether, for we commenced 
giving it to all persons who came in. 

42d. Do you say that the evening when you and Spear took 
ether was before October ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

43d. Suppose that Spear stated under oath that it was in Octo- 
ber or November, should you, with confidence, say it was before 
October ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

44th. I wish you to describe the proceedings of yours and 
Spear's in takmg ether on this evening you have spoken of. 

Atis* I had charge of the front room, and Spear, I think, had 
charge of the back room ; I most generally took care of my room 
in the evening after folks had gone out, and Spear was present ;. 



208 

lie got hold of the demijohn in some way or other, and said, " I'll 
take some ether, v/ill you?" Ke took out his handkerchief, sat 
down in the chair, took down the demijohn, and turned some on ; 
he sat back in the chair and held the handkerchief up to his face, 
and began to inhale it ; he appeared to fall nearly asleep ; he 
would quite, I think, if he kept still, if it had not excited him so ; 
1 think I told him if he would inhale it through his mouth, it 
would affect him much quicker, and much pleasanter ; that it would 
not excite him so much as it would to draw it through his nos- 
trils ; I sat down in the chair, and took the cup which I men- 
tioned with the sponge in it ; I told Spear that I would take it if 
he would leave the room, as I was afraid he would cut up some 
capers, he was so lively, if I got asleep ; I shut myself into the 
room, sat back in the chsir, and began to inhale it. 

45th. Did Spear v/hen he inhaled the ether, on an evening, 
when, as you say, you and he inhaled it, move from the chair in 
w^hich he was seated ? 

Ans. He did not move while he was inhaling it, sot until he 
dropped the handkerchief; then he jumped up and was very much 
excited, he jumped round considerably ; I did not hold him ; it 
was a minute after he put the handkerchief to his nose before 
these effects showed themselves. 

46th. You said in answer to 10th interrogatory that Spear con- 
cluded not to take ether after Morton had offered him money if he 
would take it. Why did Spear decline to take it ? 
Jlns. I don't know. 

47th. Do you not know that Spear called on Dr. C. T. Jack- 
son to assure himself of the safety oi inhaling sulphuric ether, be- 
fore he ever inhaled it ? 
Jlns. No, sir. 

48th. What had Spear said to you about going to consult Dr. 
Jackson, as to the safety of inhaling ether before he inhaled it on 
the evening you have said that he and j^ou inhaled it ? 
Ans. He did not say anything about it. 

49th. Describe all that you did in regard to inhaling ether 
yourself, as you have stated that you did inhale it on a certain 
evening, Vvhen Spear also inhaled it; who held the small tube, 
which you have described as four inches long, to your mouth. 

Ans. I held the tube myself. This tube, I wish it to be under- 
stood, was nothing more than a tin cup. I have said that it made 
me feel dull, heavy, and stupid. I should think that it lasted half 
an hour. I should think it was half a minute before I began to 
feel the effects of it. Ko one was with me. I was not in the 
chair more than a minute, I don't think. I took the cup in my 
hand with the sponge in it, turned the ether into it, and held it 
up to my face. I could not say how much ether I put upon it. 
The sponge was always washed after it had been used, and put 
into the dish ready for the next time. 



209 

50th. When did you learn that it was nothing more than a tin 
eup? How learn this? Why did you call it an inhaler yesterday? 

Ans. I have not learned anything more about it than I knew 
at the time. This is something that occurred six years ago. When 
I gave my other affidavits, everything was fresh in my memory. 
I corrected myself immediately after calling it an inhaler, yester- 
day. I am sure I don't know why I called it an inhaler, except 
that it first came into my mind. I tried to give an exp anation 
of the tin box, or cup, but it seems that I was not fully under- 
stood. 

51st. Why did you use the tin tube of which you have spoken 
when you inhaled ether in the evening that Spear did ? 

Ans. I have already said, I believe, because it was more con- 
venient. 

52d. At the time you inhaled ether and felt numb and heavy, 
&c., as you have stated, on the evening when Spear inhaled it, 
"Nvas there an India rubber bag in either of the rooms of Dr. 
Morton ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

53d. Was sulphuric ether ever purcnased for the office of Dr. 
Morton hy the demijohn, except in the instance you have testified 
about? Where did you last see that demijohn, and when, and 
how much ether was there in it ? 

Ans. It was not purchased to my knowledge on any other oc- 
casion. The last I saw of the demijohn, it remained in the little 
joom. It was that fall, how late in it I don't recollect. I can't 
say how much ether there was in it. 

54th. Was there any case, by inhalation of ether, of numbness, 
&c., as you have described the effects on yourself, before your 
own, to your knowledge, in Dr. Morton's premises? 

Ans. No, sir, with the exception of Spear's. 

55th. You say in answer to 29th interrogatory, that we inhaled 
ether because we were alone in the office. Was it or not, that 
Spear on the evening referred to, urged you to take it ? 

Ans. No, sir. I don't know as he gave any reason; he merely 
asked me to take, it. I don't know, I am sure, that I could give 
any reason for taking it, more than out of curiosity. 

56th. You say in 29th interrogatory, that Spear did not fall right 
away and become unconscious, but that he was very much excited. 
You say that it made you numb, dull, heavy, and stupid. Is this 
a full description of the effects upon you and Spear on the even- 
ing you say you and he took the ether? 

Ans. I believe it is. 

58th. Do you remember Dr. Morton's reply to you when, as 
you say, you told him the effects of the ether on you on the even- 
ing you have testified about? 

Ans. He said that if I had taken a little more, I should have 
14 



210 

probably been unconscious, so that I might have had an operation 
performed without feeling any pain or without knowing it. 

59th. What was it that you now say you told Spear, when, as 
you say, he had the handkerchief at his mouth on the evening y©u 
say he and you breathed the ether? 

Jins, I did not tell Spear anything. 

60th. How long do you say that the demijohn of one gallon 
or of half a gallon had been in the office before you and Spear 
inhaled it ? 

Ans. I could not say. 

61st. How long does it take, after teeth have been taken out, 
before the gums are so hard or in such order that a new set of 
teeth can be put in ? 

Ans. From eight to twelve months. 

62d. Did you ever hear Dr. Morton say he had inhaled sul- 
phuric ether ? 

Ans, Yes, sir ; after I bought the ether of Brewer, Stevens & 
Gushing ; I should think it was a few days after. 

63d. Ever hear Dr. Morton say from what — by means of what 
apparatus he himself breathed sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

64th. When, in answer to one of the questions, you said that 
these things happened so long ago that you could not tell what 
occurred next, what did you mean by that statement ? 

Ans. I meant that a great many of these little things, of w^hich 
I am inquired of now, had slipped my mind. I gave the sub- 
stance of the whole, but perhaps not the details, as fully as I had 
previously. 

65th. Did you mean that you were not clear and precise in 
your recollection of dates, or of the order of occurrences that 
happened so long since ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

66th. Did you hear Dr. Morton speak of a new composition 
for filling teeth ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

67th. Did you ever hear him speak of a new mode of fasten- 
ing them to the plate ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

68th. When, as you state in answer to 9th interrogatory, did 
you hear Dr. Morton ask Whitman to ascertain from Dr. Jackson 
if ether would dissolve India rubber ? 

Ans. That was after I purchased the ether of Brewer, Stevens 
& Gushing, and after I had been sent to Dr. Gay's. 

69th. Was there not, after the 30th of September, 1846, a 
variety of apparatus prepared and proposed, and tried for the 
purpose of inhaling ether ? 
Ans. I think there was. 



211 

70tli. Were you steadily in Dr. Morton's office durincr the 
early part of October, 1846, while ether ^vas administered to the 
patients there ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

71st. Were there not many inquiries by the patients as to the 
safety and security of inhaling ether ? 

Ans. I don't know as to that. 

72dc. Did you not hear Dr. Morton often answer inquiries by 
assurances of the safety of the inhalation of sulphuric ether, and 
give as his authority the assurances as from Dr. Jackson that it 
could be breathed with perfect safety ? 

Alls. No, sir ; I never heard Dr. Jackson's name mentioned in 
connexion with ether until a long time after this time — I mean 
October. 

72d&. In answer to 28th interrogatory, you say it was more 
convenient to use sponge ,than a handkerchief. Who had used 
the sponge and tube of which you have spoken before this time, 
when you took it in the evening? 

Ans. I don't know that anybod}- had for that purpose. 

Tod. To whom, during the months of October and November, 
1846, have you given any accounts or statements of the discovery 
of ancesthesia? 

Ans. No one. 

74th. Do you mean to swear that, during those two months, 
you did not talk of this discover}' ? 

Ans. Vve did talk of it a great deal in the office. 

7oth. Did you not talk of it out of the office ? 

Ans. Yes, I think I did. Everybody was talking of it ; I 
can't name now any particular person. People would frequently 
ask me what we were doing — •' what are you doing up to Mor- 
ton's there?" 

76th. Did you not say, during the fail of 1846, that Dr. C. 
T. Jackson, or Dr. Jackson, made the discover}, but that Dr. 
Morton deserved credit for bringing it out ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

77th. Vv'^hether or not you have heard Dr. Morton state, be- 
tween October, 1846, and November of that 3^ear, and up to 
January or February, 1847, that Dr. Jackson was the discoverer 
of anaesthesia, and that he (Morton) was the person to whom 
Dr. Jackson had communicated the discovery ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

78th. Have you read here in the office to-day t\\v affidavit of 
Daniel W. Gooch, on page 77, in Report No. 114, referred to in 
25th interrogatory ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

79th. Since yesterday, the 22d of November, (your direct ex- 
amination having been adjourned till to-day,) with whom have 
you spoken about your evi^ience here ? 



212 

Ans. I spoke with Mr. Dana last evening ; he is the only per- 
son, I believe. 

80th. Who has spoken to you of coming here ? 

Ans, No one, only the constable who summoned me here. 

81st. During the half hour's recess to-day, (taken after 29th 
interrogatory,) have you spoken with any one? if any, with 
whom, about the subject of } our examination ? 

Ans. No one, sir. 

82d. Who called your attention since j'esterday to your state- 
ment in the 11th, 16th and 17th interrogatories ? 

Ans. No one ; it came to me voluntarily last evening, when 
I went home and looked at my affidavit. 

83d. What affidavits did you look over last night? 

Mns. The affidavit which I first made. I don't recollect the 
date of it. 

84th. What was it in ? Who furnished you with the paper or 
papers ? 

Ans. I have them on file. It was in the minority report of 
Dr. Jackson. 

8oth. What have you on file? 

Ans. The papers and pamphlets relative to the ether controversy. 

86th. How much time did you give to a perusal of them last 
night ? 

Afis. Five minutes, not to exceed that, I don't think. 

87th. Hovr much time before, and when last before? 

Ans. I am sure I can't say. I read Dr. Morton's report; I 
mean the last Congressional report. That vras the last I read on 
the subject. 

8Sth. You say in answer to 8th interrogatory, that Dr. Mor- 
ton sent you to Dr. Gay's — what did Dr. Morton say to you 
about going to Dr. Gay's? Why did you not find Dr. Gay's 
place? Did you look in the Directory to find Dr. Gay's number? 
Did you go more than once to find Dr. Gay's place? 

Ans. He said, "William,, go up to Dr. Gay's, and ask him if 
ether will dissolve India rubber." He told me where it was, I 
believe; I vvent, and I believe I could not find the place. I had 
not been in the city then tor a great while, and w^as not much 
acquainted with the city. I don't remember of looking into the 
Directory. I did not go more than once. 

89th. Was anybody else sent to Dr. Gay's place? Can you 
tell the date, or near the date when you went as you say, to Dr. 
Gay's? 

Ans. No one else vras sent that I know of. I cannot tell the 
date. I know it was after I bought the sulphuric ether, and pre- 
viously to the Frost case. 

90th. Have you ever before made the statement which you 
have maile here to-day, in answer to 29th interrogatory, of the 
effect of ether upon yourself, and of the reply of Dr. Morton to you? 



213 

Ans. No, sir. 

91st. Why not? 

Ans, I don't know that I was ever asked before how it affected 
me. 

92d. Did you know it all the time when you made your former 
affidavits ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. I knew^ how it affected me, of course. 

9od. Did you have these things, which you say you have now 
for the first time stated, in your mind and recollection then? 

Ans. I don't know whether I remembered them at the time or 
not. 

94th. If you did not remember them at the time, have you 
known them since, and if since, how long since ? 

Ans. I knew them all the time. 

9oth. Why did you not stale them, if that is so? 

Ans. I can't say, because I don't know that I recollected them 
at the time. I might have supposed that they were of no con- 
sequence, perhaps. 

96th. What did Dr. Morton say to Whitman, when, as you 
say in answer to 40th interrogatory, he asked him to get down a 
book and "see what it said on ether?" 

Ans. That is all that he said ; all that I heard him say, at any 
rate. 

97th. When did Francis Whitman die ? What of? And when? 

Ans. He died in November, 1847, of typhoid fever, at Dr. 
Morton's father's. 

98th. Was that at Dr. Morton's house? 

Ans. I don't suppose it was. It was Dr. Morton's father who 
kept the house. 

99th. Did Dr. Morton live in that house? 

Ans. He boarded there, I believe. 

100th. State when and v/here your affidavit of March 2Dth, 
1847, printed in Report No. 114, and referred lo in your answer 
to 27th interrogatory was made; who wrote it; who was pre- 
sent while it Y/as written; and all the circumstances attending the 
taking of it ? 

Ans. It was made at Dr. Morton's room, No. 19 Tremont 
row, in the laboratory, which then was in the third story, I 
think. R. J. Burbank, Esq., wrote it. I can't say surely, who 
were present. I was present, and Spear was present, and it is 
my impression that Whitman was present. I don't know that 
there is anything else to state about it. He came in and took it. 
It was the first I heard of it. It had not been mentioned to me 
by any person. 

101st. Was G. G. Hayden present? 

Ans, I don't think he was. 

102d. Do you know D. P. Wilson? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 






103d. How were the afFidavits taken? Were Spear and Whit- 
man there while your affidavit was reduced to writing? 

Ans. I don't know whether Spear and Whitman were present 
when my affidavit was taken or not. I think they were present 
some of the time. Mr. Eurbank said he wanted to take our affi- 
davits in relation to the ether discovery. He did not say for 
whom he wanted to take them. He said he wanted to know 
what we knew about ether, or the discovery of it. He did not 
ask questions, but took down what we stated. He came in when 
we were very busy indeed, and we had to be as brief as possible. 
I think this was in February, 1847. Dr. Morton was not in the 
room when it \vas taken. 

104th. Was this your phraseoioo-y to Mr. Burbank, '• that is to 
say, about the 1st of .July, 1846 ?''' 

jliis. I used it, I think ; I don't think Mr. Burbank asked a 
question. 

105th. V^hether or not, if one of you three who were present, 
was at fault, in recollection or otherwise, another would prompt 
him, or suggest anything:, such as a date, &c. ? 

^ns. I don't think they did. 

106th. Was there any confusion or excitement in you or Spear 
or Whitman, when these affidavits w^ere taken ? 

Jins. No, sir. 

107th. Was there any haste, rapidity or hurrying ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

108th. What time of day was it ? 

A71S. I can't say; I should think it was afternoon. 

109th. Were the statements sworn to which Mr. Burbank re- 
duced to writing ? if aye, before w^hom ? And how soon after they 
were taken ? 

Ans. I can't say, I am sure. 

110th. Were tftere any bottles or jugs, or any wine or spirit 
to drink there, when these affidavits w^ere taken ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

111th. When first had Mr. Edward Warren any connexion 
with Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. T can't say ; I should think it v>-as in the spring of 1847. 

112th. Was it before or after these affidavits by Mr. Burbank 
were taken ? 

Ans. I can't say that : I should think it was after. 

113. After these affidavits by Mr. Burbank were taken, did 
you hear any talk by Spear and Whitman about experiments with 
ether by Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I don't remember of having heard anything. 

114-th. When did you, if ever, hear of any experiment or ex- 
periments by Dr. Morton with ether, on a spaniel ? 

Ans. I can't say when I heard of it ; I had heard of it. 

115th. Before or after Edward Warren came ? 



215 

Ans. I can't say. 

116th. What are your pecuniary relations with Dr. Morton ? 
Does he owe you anything or you him ? 

A?is. I don't know that I owe him, or he ows me ; we are 
square in that respect, and have been for a number of years. 

117th. At, or before, or after you gave your affidavit, dated 
March 25, 1847, referred to in the 26th interrogatory on page 79 
of the minority report No. 114, what inducement, by way of gift 
or present, it any, did Dr. Morton hold out to you ? 

Ans. Not any. 

118th. Did Dr. Morton ever give you an order on Wilson or 
any other tailor for a suit of clothes ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

119th. Has Dr. Morton promised to give you a handsome re- 
ward when he should get his money, as he stated it, from Con- 
gress ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

120th. Have you ever so stated ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

121st. You say in answer to 29th interrogatory, '^ we reported 
to Dr. Morton the result" — what did Spear say to Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I don't know whether he said anything or not. 

Direct^ resumed hy Mr. Dana. 

1st. When you say that Dr. Morton had two rooms, do you 
or not, include the little room partitioned off as part of the 
front room? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

2d. Did the artificial or mechanical dentistry in which Dr. 
Morton was engaged, require the extracting of many teeth ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

3d. In answer to the 63d cross interrogatory, you say that Dr. 
Morton told you he had inhaled ether ? When was this ? Was it 
before or after the case of Frost, and how long ? How do you 
know this ? 

Ans. It was before the case of Frost, because after we began 
to give it to every person indiscriminately, just as they came in 
and wanted it ; it was just after I bought the ether of Brewer, 
Stevens & Gushing and before Spear and I took it. 

4th. At the time you gave your affidavit before Mr. Burbank, 
in what room and story was the laboratory ? 

Ans. It was in the third story and the back room. 

5th. When had the laboratory been moved ? 

Ans. 1 can't say ; it was moved in the fall 1846 ; I won't be 
positive of this ; it might have been in the next spring. 

6th. How near the time Dr. Keep came into partnership with 
Dr. Morton? 



216 

Ans. It was moved before the time Keep came in, I believe. 

7th. In what part of the work was D. P. Wilson regularly en- 
gaged at the time of 3^our affidavit ? 

Ans. I think he was one story below me ; he was engaged in 
giving ether and extracting teeth. 

8th. Was that work in which he was engaged carried on in the 
same story with the laboratory, after the laboratory was removed? 

Ans. No, sir. 

9th. Do you know for what cause Mr. Hemmenway left the 
establishment of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I do not. 

WM. P. LEAVITT. 

(B.) 

Boston, February 13, 1849. 

I, William P. Leavitt, of Boston, surgeon dentist, on oath 
depose and say, that on or about Tuesday, the 6th instant, Mr. 
Henry C. Lord called upon me at my rooms, in Tremont row, 
made himselt known to me, and began a conversation about Dr. 
Morton's character and prospects : and after a good deal of cir- 
cumlocution, told me that he had seen Mr. Thomas R. Spear, (of 
whom he spoke very highly), and obtained a statement from him 
as to the dates in his affidavit, and that Spear had said he could 
not swear that the dates were correct. I told him that if Spear 
had said anything of the kind, he had done very wrong, for the 
dates were correctly stated in Spear's affidavit, and that I knew 
them to be so. He then asked me how I knew them to be so. 
I then told him several circumstances that took place in June and 
July, 1846, and the early part of August, which made it clear 
to me that the experiments were made at the times stated by us 
and by Dr. Alorton. Among others, I stated that I was absent 
attending court as a witness in the latter part of June of that 
year, and returned on the 3d of July, the day before the anniver- 
sary of independence, and found Dr. Hayden in Dr. Morton's 
office, and that the experiments and my coimexion with them 
followed immediately thereupon. Mr. Lord seemed satisfied 
with my statements and made no further question as to dates, and 
asked me if it was my opinion that Dr. Morton had used sul- 
phuric ether before his interview with Dr. Jackson. I answered, 
that was my belief. Mr. Lord then took his leave. 

About half an hour after this, a note came to me from Mr^ 
Lord asking me to step down to his office for a few minutes. I 
did not go. In about fifteen minutes Mr. Lord called, asked me 
into the entry, and said he wished me to do an act of justice to 
Dr. Jackson. I asked him what it was. He said he wished me 
to write him a note to the effect that it was my belief that Dr. 
Morton did not use sulphuric ether until it was suggested to him 



217 

by Dr. Jackson. I told him that my belief was the contrary of 
this, and that I could not write such a note. He then proposed 
that he should make such a statement and that I should confirm 
it in a note to him. This I refused to do. He then proposed 
that I should write a note to the proposed effect ; that he would 
send it to the chairman of the committee of Congress with a 
request to return it, and that it should be returned to me, and 
never published, nor used in any other manner. In this con- 
nexion he told me that his brother had written to him from 
Washington ; that if he could only get these statements from 
the witnesses, ''the whole thing would be dished" — referring to 
Dr. Morton's petition. 

He also made statements which I took to be inducements to 
me, to the effect that Dr. Morton had no chance of success — • 
that Dr. Jackson had money enough, that I would not be a loser^. 
and offered to show me a telegraphic despatch from his brother 
to the effect that two of the committee had assured him that no 
report would be made. 

I again refused to write such a note. (Before this he had re- 
presented his object to be merely personal, and with no intention 
to use the note in the controversy, and only stated the plan of 
sending it to Washington upon a direct question put by me.) He 
then said he w^as very much disappointed in me ; praised my 
character and appearance as to independence, and said he had 
hoped to obtain something from me. He then said that he should 
make a statement that I had told him that it was my belief that 
Dr. Morton had not used sulphuric ether before his interview 
with Dr. Jackson. I told him that if he did, I should contradict 
it. He said that then there w^ould be hi> character against mine ; 
and intimated that, in the public estimation, the scale would in- 
cline a little in his favor. I said " Very w^ell." He then said 
"You did telLme so." I became excited, and answered, "Mr. 

Lord, you are a d d liar." Mr. Lord immediately cooM 

down, and said he was very sorry there was such a difference ; 
and I told him I was the same. I also told him that if I wished 
to make any further statement than my original affidavit I would 
let him know. I had no intention of making any such further 
statement, and have not seen nor heard of Mr. Lord since that 
time. 

I have just heard that he has sent some affidavits to the com- 
mittee of Congress relating to his conversations with Mr. Spear, 
and thinking it possible he may have alluded also to his conver- 
sations with me, I make this statement to contradict or explain 
the same, as may be. 

I also solemnly depose and say, that I have no alteration to 
make in my affidavit published in " LittelPs Living Age" of 
March, 1848. 

WILLIAM P. LEAVITT. 



218 

Suffolk Countt, ss: 

Then personally appeared the above named William P.Leavitt, 
to me personally known, and made oath that the above statement 
by him subscribed is true. 

Before RICHARD H. DANA, Jr. 

Justice of the Peace. 
February 13, 1849. 

I certify that I have compared the above with my affidavit, 
and that it is an exact copy thereof. 

■ WM. P. LEAVITT. 

The foregoing is the copy referred to by me in the answer of 
this deponent to the 26th direct interrogatory, as annexed, and 
marked B. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, | 
Suffolk County, ) 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true CQpy of the de- 
position in perpetuam of William P. Leavitt, taken before us, 
upon the petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of 
this Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law. 

The extract below from report 114, page 31, is introduced in connection witli 
the first preceding and second following afiidavits : 

" During the preparation of this report there was forwarded to the committee 
the affidavit of Henry C. Lord, one of the counsel for Dr. Jackson, and also the 
affidavit of George H. Palmer, and one by Dr. Jackson himself, from which it 
appears that Mr. Lord, the counsel, called upon Thomas R. Spear — induced 
Spear to visit him at his chamber, and held a conversation with him, and that 
his effort in that conversation was to get some admission from Spear that his 
testimony, given under oath in the case, was untrue. Lord and Palmer say that 
he did so admit. The witness Spear, who was afterwards called upon, testifies 
that he did not, and states facts which show an effort to entrap him in a mode 
not usually practised by the legal profession in the United States. Your com- 
mittee give no weight to the alleged statements, considering the manner in 
which they were procured, even as stated by Mr. Lord himself. There was a 
like attempt to get a contradictory statem.ent from Leavitt, similar in its cha- 
racter with that made with Spear, but more strongly marked by professional 
irregularity. These depositions in no respect modified the opinion of your 
committee as to the facts given in question, and only presents another most 
striking example of the caution with which testimony of the declaration of parr 
ties and witnesses should be received unsupported, and especially when con- 
tradicted by written papers." 

Since Dr. Spear removed to California, where he was introduced into the 
practice of his profession by the mayor of the city of Boston, and former Secre- 
tary of State, Hon. J. P. Bigelow, who had known him from a boy; another 
statement from one Colvin Anger has appeared, which the above extract is appli- 
cable to. 



219 



Boston-, March 25, 1847. 

I, Thomas R. Spear, jmi., of Boston, in the State of Massa- 
chusetts, depose and say — 

That, about the first of August, 1846, at request of Dr. Morton, 
I inhaled a portion of ether, which William P. Leavitt brought 
from Brewer, Stevens & Co.'s, in a demijohn, in Dr. Morton's 
office. The rest of the young men were airaid to take it ; but, 
having taken what I supposed to be the same before, at the Lex- 
ington Academy, I did not hesitate to take it when I learned 
what it was. 

About a week after the ether was purchased of Brewer, Ste- 
vens & Co., Dr. Morton was expecting some persons at his 
office to witness an experiment, and he then offered me a sum of 
money if I would be present and inhale the ether. I went home 
and consulted my parents, and they advised me not to ^o. I 
have often heard Dr. M. say that, when he had completed his in- 
vention for extracting teeth without pain, he should be satisfied. 

Ever after Dr. Hayden came into the office. Dr. Morton seemed 
wholly absorbed in making this discovery, and had a number of 
bottles, an India-rubber bag, &c., &c., with which he prosecuted 
his experiments in the little room adjoining the front offixe, where 
he frequently locked himself in. 

Dr. Morton offered me five dollars if I would get some one to 
come into the office and to have an experiment tried upon him, of 
having a tooth extracted while under the operation of gas. I 
went, accordingly, down to the wharves, in company with Wm. 
P. Leavitt, but did not get any one to have the experiment tried 
upon. 

THOMAS E. SPEAR. Jr. 



Commonwealth of Massachusetts^ 
Suffolk county. 

I, Thomas R. Spear, jr., of Boston, surgeon dentist, on oath 
depose and say, that, on Sunday, February 4th instant, Mr. Lord, 
one of the counsel for Dr. Charles T. Jackson, called at my lodg- 
ings. No. 20 La Grange Place, at about noon, and asked me to 
go with him to his room at the United States hotel, upon some 
business of great importance, and was anxious I should go forth- 
with. He did not tell me what he wished to see me about, nor 
did T know who he was ; but after he left, it occurred to me from 
his name, (which he gave me,) that he was Dr. Jackson's coun- 
sel. I could not go with him, but promised to call at his lodg- 



220 

ings soon after. Thinking that the business might relate to the 
ether controversy, I took with me the Living Age, which con- 
tained my affidavit. 

I had no desire, and had intimated none, to see Mr. Lord, or 
any one else on this subject, or to make any change in my affi- 
davit. 

I found at Mr. Lord's room a gentleman, whom he introduced 
as his room-mate, Mr. Palmer. Mr. Lord was very attentive, 
and unaccountably cordial in his manner; expressed a strong 
friendship for me, and said he was always glad to see me, and 
offered me a cigar. He spoke against Dr. Morton's character, 
and his chances of success at Washington, and gradually intro- 
duced the subject of the statements in my affidavit, t imme- 
diately told him I did not wish to have any conversation upon 
the subject, or any controversy. He said that our conversation 
was strictly confidential, and that he should make no use of 
anything that passed between us. I did not like his mode of 
proceeding, and something was said by one of us about the third 
person being present. But he said he was making inquiries for 
his own personal satisfaction, and for no other object. 

Mr. Lord then proceeded to put various questions relating to 
facts and opinions, many of which were upon suppositions and hy- 
potheses very difficut to answer, tending to confuse a person, and 
to give indistinct or false impressions. Some of these questions I 
declined answering; others I answered indefinitely, and some 
were incapable of being answered. Neither Mr. Lord nor Mr. 
Palmer took any minutes while I was present. 

He then desired me to call at his office the next day at ten 
o'clock. I promised to do so ; but being unwell, I called on Tues- 
day, February 6. He had a written statement which he said was 
what I had said at his room on the Sunday before, and which he 
read to me. I denied that that was a correct statement of my 
conversation, and told him that I had said nothing of the kind. 
He then asked me to put a statement in writing. I told him that 
I would consider of it ; but that, if I did give a statement, it would 
be a very different one from that which he had prepared. He 
seemed quite angry. The next day I called and told him that I 
preferred not to make any statement, and expressly told him that 
I had no recollection of having said anything of the character of 
the statement he had prepared. 

I make this affidavit, because I am informed that Mr. Lord has 
sent to Washington 'an affidavit relating to my conversation with 
him. As I have not seen his affidavit, I am not able to meet it in 
detail ; but solemnly depose and say, that I have no alteration to 



221 

make in my original affidavit, which appears in Littel's Living 
A^e of March, 1848. 

THOMAS R. SPEAR, Jr. 
Boston, February 13, 1849. 

Suffolk, ss: 
Then personally appeared the above named Thomas R. Spear, 
to me personally known, and made oath that the above statement, 
by him subscribed, is true. 
Eefore me, 

RICHARD H. DANA, Jr, 

Justice of the Peace, 
Boston, February VS, 1849. 



Boston, March 25, 1847. 

I, Francis Whitman, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
State of Massachusetts, student at dentistry, on oath depose and 
say — 

That I have often heard Dr. Morton speak about discovering 
some means of extracting teeth without pain. This discovery, 
appeared to be the subject of his thoughts and investigations 
during the greater part of last year, i. e,, 1846. One day — I 
think it was previous to July, 1846 — Dr. M., in speaking of the 
improvements he had made in his profession, and of some one 
improvement in particular, said, if he could only extract teeth 
without pain, he " would make a stir." I replied that I hardly 
thought it could be done. He said he believed it could, and that 
he would find out something yet to accomplish his purpose. In 
a conversation with Dr. M. some time in July, he spoke of having 
his patients come in at one door, having all their teeth extracted 
without pain and without knowing it, and then going into the 
next room and having a full set put in. 

I recollect Dr. Morton, came into the office one day in great 
glee, and exclaimed that he had " found it," and that he could 
extract teeth without pain I I don't recollect what followed ; 
"but, soon after, he wanted one of us in the office to try it, and he 
then sent William and Thomas out to hire a man to come in and 
have an experiment tried upon him. After all these circumstances 
happened, Dr. Hayden advised Dr. Morton to consult with some 
chemist in relation to this discovery. I went, at Dr. Morton's 
request, to see if Dr. Jackson had returned, (he having been ab- 
sent from the city,) but found that he was still absent. 

I told Dr. Morton I knew what it was that William had bought. 



222 

and said it was chloric ether. Dr. M. thePx said he wished to know 
if ether would dissolve India-ruhher, and sent William P. Leavitt 
to inquire of Dr. Gay if it would. 

About this time. Dr. M. asked me to get the books on chemistry 
and find what they said about ether. I did so^ and read it over 
to him, and I think he went to Burnett's to see if he could not 
find something there. 

After the first announcement of the discovery in the papers, I 
went to Dr. Jackson's, and he spoke to me of some notices in the 
papers : but, immediately after, said he did not " care how much 
Dr. M. advertised, if his own name was not drawn in with it." 
A week or two after this conversation I was at Dr. Jackson's, 
when he asked me hovr we got along with the gas. I told him 
that we got along first-rate. He then said he "did not know 
how it would work in pulling teeth, but knew its effects at col- 
lege upon students, when the faculty had to get a certificate from 
a physician that it was injurious, to prevent them from using it;" 
but that he '■ did not know how it would operate it pulling teeth." 

FRANCIS WHITMAN. 



T, Theodore Metcalf, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, of lawful age, being first duly 
sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by Richard 
H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. William T. G. Morton: 

1st. Where is your residence ? How long have you resided 
there ? Were you a chemist and druggist in Boston ? In what 
street ? From what time to what time ? What public institu- 
tions did you supply ? 

Answer. I reside in Boston. I have resided there since 1837. 
I was a chemist and druggist in Boston, in Tremont street, from 
1837 to 1845 or 1846. I supphed the city institutions at South 
Boston, all of them, and the Marine Hospital at Chelsea. 

2d. Who was your successor ? When did he take possession 
of the premises ? 

|r Ans. Mr. Joseph Burnett was my successor ; he took posses- 
sion of the premises in January, 1845. 

3d. Where was Dr. William T. G. Morton's office? How 
near to your place of business ? Did you know him ? Did he 
deal with you ; and how much ? What was his occupation ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton's office was in Tremont street, within a few 
doors of my place of business. I did know him from his first 
coming to Boston ; he was my customer to the amount of several 
hundred dollars per year. There was seldom a day when the 
Doctor was not in the store. He was a dentist. I should say, 
from the nature of the articles which he purchased of me, that 
the greater part of his business was mechanical dentistry. This 



223 

I judge of from his purchases, and not from absolute knowledge. 

4th. Have you visited Europe? How many times? When 
did you sail ; in what vessel, and from what port ? What 
countries did you visit ; and when did you return? Where have 
you resided since your return ? 

Ans. I have visited Europe once. I sailed on the 6th of July, "^^^^ ^^^^i- 
1846, in the Joshua Eates, from Boston. I made the general ^J^!JJ^/''^l^ 
tour of Europe, visiting all but the extreme parts. I returned controrer- 
in October, 1847. I have resided in Boston since my return. sy, the fact 

Dth. Have you been engaged, and how much, in chemistry ^^.J^gg^p^^^ 
since your return ? meriting 

Ans. I had a manufactory of chemicals at Roxbury for little with ether 
more than a year. P^7 %lf 

btn. Have you now, or ever had any, ana what relation or and conse- 
connexion of blood, marriage, or business with Dr. Morton ? quentiy, 

Ans. None by blood or marriage, and by business only pre- ^'^^^ , ^® 
viously to 1845, as I have stated. j^ave de- 

7th. Do you know Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston ? How nved his 
long, and how intimately have you known him ? ^^^^ ^^^ 

Ans. I have known him ever since my first residence in Bos- ^ect froni 
ton. I have always had an acquaintance with him, and always Dr. Jack- 
been on friendly relations with him.. son on 30th 

8th. When and where did you first hear of the ether discovery, ^>ll^^,^g^^ 
and how? What account did you first hear ? (Objected to.)"^ as alleged 

Ans. I think it w^as in Italy where I saw an account of it in a ^^ *^^^ 
French journal ; it was in the winter of 1847. It was a general ^^^ e™^^- 
account of the anaesthetic effects of ether, and ascribing the dis- 
covery to a dentist of Boston, without any naixie. It must have 
been in January or February of that winter, or March. 

9th. Did you ever have any conversation w^ith Dr. William T. 
G. Morton on the subject of the properties and effects of ether ? 
If yea, when was it ? State particularly all your means of 
knowledge as to the date, and especially as to its being before or 
after you heard of the ether discovery, and before or after your 
visit to Europe. 

Ans. I did have a conversation with him on that subject. It 
was previous to my departure for Europe ; it was the spring or 
early summer of 1846. I know it was previous to my departure There can 
for Europe, because, when I saw this account in the French ^|*-^^^^ "^^^" 
journal, I fixed it in my own mind that Dr. Morton was the man, ^ate, * and 
remembering this conversation ; and I think I mentioned it to there is no 
persons who were with me. pretence 

10th. Who were these persons? Are you sure that the ac- ^^. *^egg jjg 
count which you saw gave no name ? not of tiie 

Ans. I can't be positive who the persons Avere : I think they higjiestcre- 
were my travelhng companions — two gentlemen from New^ York — ^ ^^'' 
but I can't be certain. I know- that I read the journal in a Cafe, 



224 

and spoke of it at the time. lam confident that the account 
mentioned no name. 

11th. Where was this conversation with Dr. Morton ? State 
the circumstances fully, and all that was said or done on either 
side. 

Ans. It was in my store in Tremont street, then occupied 
Prior to by Mr. Burnett. Dr. Morton came in, and had a vial filled with 
^g^g^''^"^^' sulphuric ether. While he had it in his hands, he came to me 
Mr. Metcalf^nd asked various questions with regard to its qualities and 
sailed for medicinal effects. He asked with regard to its effects when in- 
Europe. haled. I spoke of it as producing the same effects as nitrous 
oxide gas w^hen inhaled ; and I related to him some experiments 
of mine in taking and giving it for purposes of exhilaration. I 
stated to him also what was the then general belief, that if in- 
haled in excessive quantities, its effects would be dangerous, if 
not fatal. Either Dr. Morton or myself, I don't know which, 
referred to the experiments of Dr. Wells with nitrous oxide, in 
extracting teeth without pain, which had failed a short time 
before — I can't tell how long. [I can't say whether it was at 
the time of this conversation, or when I first read the journal in 
Italy, that the idea flashed upon my mind that Dr. Morton was 
D^" trying to follow up what Dr. Wells had failed in — that is, to find 
something for a substitute for the nitrous oxide which Dr. Wells 
had failed in using.] 

(The part in brackets objected to by Mr. Jackson as not re- 
sponsive, and as not proper evidence. J. P. P.) 

12th. State all you saw or did with reference to this vial. 
Describe it ? How large w^as it ? What did you do to it ? How 
do you know it was sulphuric ether? Why may it not have 
been chloric ether, or nitrous oxide ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton brought in the vial which he had filled. The 

vial had on an old and dirty label, on which was printed sul- 

Bvidence phuric ether. The label was not put on at the time. I recollect 

^Lj^^^^gf perfectly well having the vial in my hands, and uncorking it and 

fore that smelling it. It was a two or four-ounce vial, as large as that. I 

date. know it was sulphuric ether, and not chloric ether or nitrous oxide. 

13th. What did you know of Dr. Wells's experiment, of 

which you have spoken ? 

Ans. Nothing, except by hearsay. Dr. Wells told me that 
K^ he had come to Boston to try these experiments. It was before 
this time. He said that it w^as a form of nitrous oxide, in reply 
to my question w^hether it was not nitrous oxide. He said it 
D^" was a form of nitrous oxide deprived of its noxious qualities. 
He asked me who he could get to prepare it for him. I referred 
him to Dr. Morton, who was then a student with Dr. Jackson, 
saying that he would inform him, or go to Dr. Jackson with 
him, or something like that. He stated to me that he was going 
to extract teeth without pain, at some public place, and that he 



225 

Lad invited all the physicians, or many of the physicians. There <4I; 
was a general rumor that the experiment had failed. 

(Mr. Jackson objects to all the conversation with Dr. Wells. 

J. P. P.) 

14th. You speak of a *' general rumor" that Dr. Wells's experi- .^^^ 
ment had been tried in Boston, and had failed. How far was 
this a general rumor? How far was it knov/n in Boston that Dr, 
Wells had tried this experiment? 

Ans. I heard it through physicians who were present. I don't ^^^^^ 
know whether it went beyond them or not. A more particular 
account of it, however, I got from Dr. Morton. 

15th. When and where did Dr. Morton give you this account 
of Dr. Wells's experiment? 

Ans. At Mr. Burnett's store, the morning after the experiment. ..^a 
The time I can't tell. I remember it was the next morning, be- 
cause he said that Dr. Wells had left in the early train, in great ^^^j^ 
disgust, or disappointment, leaving him to settle up the matters 
connected with it. This was while I kept the store, I think, ^£^ 
though I am not positive. 

16th. Have you lived in Hartford? When, and in what occu- 
pation? How long have you known Dr. WelJs? 

Ans. I lived in Hartford for ten years, just preceding my coming 
to Boston, and knevv^ Dr. Wells as a dentist there, but 1 had no 
particular acquaintance with him. 

17th. Did you supply Dr. Charles T. Jackson while you kept this 
place? Do you know of anything which ever led you to suspect 
that Dr. Jackson was experimenting on ether, vvith reference to 
prevention of pain? 

Ans. I remember to have sold him many things, but not cherni- _^^£Xi 
cals generally. I know of nothing which led me to snispect that 
he was experimenting in ether. ■ 

18th. Where is Dr. Jackson's laboratory? How long has it 
been there? How near is that to the Massachusetts General 
Hospital? Which is nearest to it, his laboratory, or Dr. Morton's 
rooms ? 

Ans. His laboratory is in vSomerset street, No. 20, or 21. I; Vethedid 
was there in 1846. I know not hnY Ions; previously. I can't Jl*^* ^,. ^^^J^ 
give the distance from the hospital; I should say it was twelve or to witnesa 
fifteen minutes walk from there, and about three minutes neaier tho experi- 
than Dr. Morton's rooms. ments. 

19th. How long was the conversation between yourself and 
Dr. Morton on the subject of ether? State anything further said, 
on either side, you may now recollect. 

Ans. The conversation was half an hour long at least. 1 can't 
remember anything more than I have stated; it was a general 
conversation, entirely about the inhaling of ether, interspersed with .^x? 
anecdotes on the subject. 



226 

20th. State anything which Dr. Morton said, or asked, tending 

to show his knowledge or ignorance of sulphuric ether, and the 

extent thereof. 

fefc Dr. j\ns. I can't remember any particular thing, but he knew 

retenS something about it, as was manifest from his questions. The 

that on 30th questions he asked showed some knowledge on the subject. When 

Sept. he he went away he knew as much about it as I did, for I gave him 

Tnorlnt "^ all the information which I had. 

what ethor . 21st. Please look at the memorial to the trustees of the Mas- 
wa«. sachusetts General Hospital, made by the Messrs. Lord, in behalf 

of Dr. C. T. Jackson, of 1849, pages 9 and 10. Have you a-ny 
statement to make respecting the same? 

Ans. I can state that the statement in the memorial of what I 

stated to them is generally incorrect. I made an answer to it at 

worth read- ^^^^ time, which is document No. 35, appended to the minority 

ing, p. 229. report No. 114, made to the 2d session of the oOth Congress, 

dated February 28th, 1849, a copy of w4'iich I hereto annex, 

and make a part of this my answer. 

(Thi.s copy is annexed marked A. J. P. P.) 
22d. Do you wish to make any change, in or addition to, your 
letter annexed in reply to the last interrogatory ? 

Ans. I wish to make no change in it, and know of nothing to 
add. 

Cross InterrGgatorieSy by Ji, Jackson^ jr.. esq.^ counsel for Dr, 
Charles T. Jackson, 

1st. Whether or not the conversation testified about at Mr. 
.Burnett's, between you and Dr. Morton was a prolonged one, or 
was it a casual and brief one ? 

Ans. It was casual so far as not being premeditated. It was 
half an hour or more in duration. 

2d. Had your conversation with Dr. Morton any relation to 
the anesthetic effects of sulphuric ether? 

Ans. To my knowledge at that time, none, 

3d. Did any fact by you communicated to Dr. Morton, or any 
statement made, relate to the prevention of pain by sulphuric 
ether in surgical operations of any kind ? 

Ans. Nothing from me of that kind. I mentioned to him an 
account of a person who had injured himself while under the in- 
fluence of ether, and did not know that he had been hurt. 

4th. In his conversation with you, whether or not Dr. Morton 
showed any knowledge of the effect of sulphuric ether in prevemt- 
ing sensations of pain in surgical operations? 

Ans. No: I don't know that he did. 

5th. Whether or not you were aware that Dr. C. T. Jackson, 
shortly before the time you had this conversation with Dr. Mor- 
ton, advised him, Morton, to employ strong chloric ether or solu- 



227 

tion of chloroform in alcohol as a substitute for creosote in dead- 
-ening the pain of an inflamed carious tooth ? 

Ans. I don't know that he had informed Dr. Morton anything 
^f the kind. I knew, through Dr. Keep, that Dr. Jackson had 
recommended to him a strong chloric ether to cure toothache. 
This was a year previous to this time, if not more. 

6th. What was the account referred to by you of a man who 
did not know of his being hurt ? 

Ans. In giving a gSieral account of my administering ether, I 
spoke of a person to whom I had given it, who was exceedingly ^^sg:^ 
wild, and who injured his head while under the influence of it, 
and did not know, when he got over the influence of the ether, 
i;hat he had hurt himself until it was called to his attention. This 
was not a new fact, hut was well known at the time. 

7th. You have spoken of stories and anecdotes which you told 
to Dr. Morton. Were any of those matters from your own ex- 
perience ? If aye, what ? 

Ans. They were all within my own experience, so far as I nov/ 
recollect. One of the incidents is the one I have just related. 
Another was the case of a man with whom I sat up all night 
while under the influence of ether, and a good many ludicrous 
things occurred, which I related to the Doctor. 

8th. Whether or not you told Dr. Morton of the efl^ect which Evidence 
the ether had on those persons to whom it had been given by t^atMorton 
you? and if so, what did you state was the effect of the ether? ^ould pro- 

Ans. The two preceding answers, will answer this. I stated duce insea- 
that its general eifect was exhilaration, and incidentally I men- s\bility pre- 
tioned this case of insensibility. J^^q^ ^ ^" 

9th. Whether or not there are various kinds of ether — ether 
with various names ? and whether or not, at this interview. Dr. 
Morton said anything about this kind of ether which he held in 
his hand, that it had not served his purpose. 

Ans. There are many kinds of ether, or several kinds and 
qualities, varying in name. He said nothing to me about the 
ether in his hands not serving his purpose. The information was ^^^ 
ail on my side, though he showed by his questions, that he knew 
something of its nature. 

10th. Whether or not the questions referred to by you in your 
answer to the 20th interrogatory, were or were not such as 
any one familiar with Dr. Wells and his experiments, and in- 
terested in the same, would or might have asked for ? 

Ans. At the time those questions were asked, I did not know 
that there was anything then in ihem more than any person in- 
terested in the subject might have asked, but subsequent events ^^ 
connected with my recollection of his m.anner, have given me the 
impression that he was then seeking for tbis object, which has 
been attained, the anaesthetic effect. 



228 

11th. Whether or not the substance of your reply to Br. Mor- 
ton, in answer to his questions, was that sulphuric ether was used 
to get oil or grease out of coat collars, and for boys to get drunk 
on or excited by ? 

Ans. I dare say I might have mentioned that as one of its 
qualities, what it was used for, though I don't now recollect ; I 
gave a very general description of its various uses, as then 
known. * 

12th. Has it not been known for a very long time (from time 
immemorial) that the inhalation of sulphuric ether would produce 
drunkenness ? 

Ans. Yes, that has been a fact known for a long time ; that 

l^^> is, that it would produce exhilaration, which is sometimes called 

drunkenness. Its effect is always compared to that of nitrous 

oxide gas, rather than to that of alcohol, as exhilarating rather 

than intoxicating. 

13th. Whether or not such questions as Dr. Morton addressed 
to you might have been put by a person ignorant of the qualities 
and properties of sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I think not, that is by one who was entirely ignorant. 

14th. How long was the time, as near as you can state it, be- 
iween the morning when Dr. Morton gave you the account of the 
failure by Dr. Wells with his experiment in Boston, and the time 
when Dr. Morton had the phial in his hands, of which you have 
spoken. 

Ans. I should think it was a year or a year and a half; but I 
have no means of fixing the time of the first conversation about 
the experiment. 

15th. You have spoken of the nearness of Dr. Morton's place 
to your own, and of the frequency of his presence in y^ours. 
Whether from the time of the account by him of Dr. Wells's ex- 
periment, the morning after it failed, to the time of your de- 
parture for Europe, you knew, or heard of, or from him (except 
those matters before stated by you) anything which tended to 
show any use, by Dr. Morton, of sulphuric ether, or experiments 
with it ? 

Ans. I was not in that place of busmess for a long time after 
the experiments by Dr. Wells. As I have before stated, I sold 
out in January, 1845, and during the whole summer of that year 
I was out of town, and heard nothing about the use of ether by 
Dr. Morton until this canversation which I have stated, which 
occurred in 1846. 

THEODORE METCALF. 






229 



A. 
To the Trustees of the Massachusetts General Hospital. 

Gentlemen: In the memorial addressed to your honorable 
board by the Messrs. Lord, occurs the following passage: — 

"Mr. Metcalf has authorized your memorialists, should they 
publish again in Dr. Jackson's defence, to make the following 
statement from him. Dr. Morton and myself, in the conversation 
to which ray letters relate, did not converse together about sul- 
phuric ether, especially its effects when inhaled -as a prevention 
of pain in dental operations, as stated by Mr. Bowditch. In so 
stating, he entirely misinterpreted the meaning of my letter. The 
conversation on my part had no reference to sulphuric ether in 
any anssthetic sense ; I spoke of it as an exhilarant, and an exhila- 
rant only. Mr. Metcalf assured one of your memorialists, that 
whatever might be his apprehensions, he could not state that the 
conversations had reference to sulphuric ether, in any anassthetic 
sense, on the part of Dr. Morton, or that Dr. Morton's inquiries 
were not such as ordinary curiosity would have suggested to the 
mind of any one, or that he himself received from the conversation 
any impression that Dr. Morton was seeking to discover anaesthetic 
properties in sulphuric ether." 

As the claim to authority is entirely unfounded, and the state- 
ment of my conversation with the memorialist so distorted as to 
convey false impressions, I have not only the right, but am under 
an obligation to correct them. 

Some months since, at the written request of Mr. J. L. Lord, I 
called at his office ; he desired from me a more particular statement 
of ray interview with Dr. Morton, than I had made in my note to 
Mr. Bowditch ; I told him that all the material facts were already 
given in my notes; that I could go no further without mingling 
impressions with facts, which I had been careful not to do 
notes; that all my impressions would make against his m the 
client^ &c. Mr. Lord desired to know w^hat those impressions 
were, and after putting questions upon the. subject in almost every 
variety of form, he wrote what he said he considered was the sub- 
stance of my answers, and asked for it my sanction ; I declined 
giving it, as his memorandum contained the same errors which 
are to be found in the above extract. Mr. Lord expressed sur- 
prise that he should have so misunderstood me, and after still fur- 
ther conversation, proposed to draw up another statement, which 
he did, and showed to me a day or two after. This second state- 
ment, although couched in different phraseology, contained some 



230 

of the same misrepresentations as the first. Feeling now that 
Mr. Lord had no desire to understand what I really meant, and 
that he caught at single words and forms of expression, made use 
of in answer to his varied queries, I told him that neither of his 
memoranda contained the true meaning of what I had said to him, 
and that I could not sanction them. I then requested him to pub- 
lish nothing, without first submitting it to my inspection. He said 
he certainly should not, and requested that I should, myself, write 
the substance of that part of my conversation with him which bore 
upon the case, and which he had failed to write satisfactorily. 
This I conditionally consented to do, but upon reflection wrote 
merely the following note: 

September 



Gentlemen : — It is only at your urgent and repeated solicita- 
tion that I am induced to say another word upon the facts known 
to me, with regard to Dr. Morton's discovery. From my former 
notes, as they appear in Mr. Bowditch's pamphlet, I have not one 
word to subtract or alter. I have stated in those notes all the 
material facts vv^hich I distinctly recollect, and now, as then, am 
ready to swear to them. In writing them, I carefully avoided all 
confusion of impressions with facts. The impressions which I 
have with regard to my conversations with Dr. Morton would not 
help your case, and could not, perhaps, be urged as proof on the 
other side ; and I have concluded, upon reflection, not to make 
them public. My positive fedimony will be received for what it 
is worth, and I desire to influence no one in this matter of mere 
opinions and impressions. 

Yours, &c., 

T. METCALF. • 

Messrs, Lord.' 

The Messrs. Lord, instead of publishing the above note, which 
is the only thing they had a right to dc^ publish a statement simi- 
lar to that to which I had refused my assent, do it in violation of 
a pro'inise not to publish anything without first submitting it to 
me, and they add to a breach of promise, a positive falsehood tn 
claiming my authority. 

The " statement" which is printed with quotation marks, as if 
it was mine, commenced with a sentence so constru^jted and pointed, 
as to carry a false impression. I stated to Mr, Lord, (what I had 
before written to Mr. Bpwditch,) that Dr. Morton did converse 
with me about sulphuric ether, especially its effects when inhaled. 

Mr. Bowditch, so far as I remember, has nowhere stated that 
we spoke of it *^as a preventive of pain in dental operations." 
The next short sentence in the ^^ statement is untrue, I never 
said to Mr. Lord thai the meaning of my letter had been entirely 



231 

'misinterpreted hy Mr. Bowditch; I told him that J had, read Mr. 
B.'s pamphlet, and had seen nothing in it hut correct statements 
and fair inferences. Mr. Lord then said that Mr. B. had stated 
that the conversation between Morton and myself was about sul- 
phuric ether as a preventive of pain in dental operations, and he 
read a sentence from the pamphlet before him, which seemed to 
sustain his assertion. Upon w^hich I said that such a stateraent or 
inference could not, perhaps, be fairly drawn from the words of 
my letter alone ; but I thought that the inference drawn by Mr. 
B. from my letter and the corroborative evidence in the case, was 
fair and natural. The next two short sentences in the " state- 
ment" are fafrly enough stated, except that to give the last one 
of them its true meaning, the personal pronoun should have been 
italicised, instead of the noun and adverb. Here the claim of 
your memorialist to authority from me seems to cease, and they 
proceed to state what one of them was assured of by me. This 
paragraph is also incorrectly stated ; I told Mr. Lord that I could 
not state positively that Dr. Morton spoke of sulphuric ether in 
an anaesthetic sense ; but that the tenor of his conversation, his nu- 
merous questions, and the reference made by one of us to Wells's 
experiments, did leave such an impression on my mind. Mi\ Lord 
asked if I could swear that this might not have been an impres- 
sion received subsequently, and which I had so mingled with for- 
mer facts, as to believe it an impression formed at the time. 1 
still said to him, that although I would not sw^ear that I had this 
impression at the time of the conversation with Dr. Morton, yet I 
believed I had. This belief is founded partly upon my memory 
of the manner of the conversation with Morton, and partly upon 
the fact, that v)hen in Italy, months after ^ I saw for the first 
time an account of etherization in a French journal, in ichich its 
discovery was ascribed simply to a ** Boston dentist ;''^ I said at 
once, that I was sure Morton must he the man, for ha zcas en- 
gaged upon ether before I left home, and that J now kneio why he 
had been so curious, and at the same time shy in his conversation 
with me. 

I may not ha.ve given in my statements and letter above, the 
precise words used at the time by Mr. Lord and myself, but 1 
have endeavored to give, as nearly as possible, the substance of 
those parts of oar conversation which he has misrepresented in the 
memorial. 

That Mr. Lord sought the intervieio for the purpose of catch- 
ing me in some apparent contradiction hy cunningly devised ques- 
tions, I have not now the least doubt, and failing to succeed as 
well as he had hoped, he resorts to the wAsrepresentcitio-': "hick 
I have pointed out. 



232 

With great regret that I am forced to trouble your honorable 
board with so long a letter. I am, gentlemen, very respectfully 
your obedient servant, 

THEODORE METCALF. 

Boston, January 6, 1849, 

The above is the copy referred to by me in my answer to the 
21st direct interrogatory, which I annex and make part of my 
answer to that interrogatory. 

THEODORE METCALF 

The foregoing is the copy referred to by me in deponent's an- 
swer to 21st direct interrogatory, as annexed and marked A. 

J. P. PUTNAM, 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, ) 

Suffolk county, \" ' 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the dep- 
osition in perpduam, of Theodore Metcalf, taken before us upon 
the petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonwealth. 

GEORGE T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM. 
Justices of the Peace and counsellors at law. 
BosroN, December 14, 1852. 



I, Joseph M. Wightmari, of Boston, in the county ot Suffolk^ 
and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, of lawful age, being first 
dul^ sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by Rich- 
ard H. Dana, Jr., counsel for William T. G. Morton : 

1st. W^hat is your occupation, place of business, and residence, 
and hov\r long have they been so ? 

Ans. I am a philosophical instrument manufacturer ; I reside in 
Boston, and my place of business is 32 Cornhill, in Boston ; I 
have been a resident in Boston always ; I was born here ; I have 
been in this business since 1836, as a master, and at the present 
place of business during the whole time. 

2d. What public offices do you hold, or have you held, during 
the last ten years ? 

Ans. I have been a member of the Grammar School Committee 
of the city of Boston for four years ; I have been chairman of the 



233 

Executive Committee of the Primary School Committee for four 
or five )^ears ; I have been a member of the Legislature of Massa- 
chusetts two years. 

3d. Have you been in the habit of lecturing and experimenting 
on any, and what, scientific subjects, and how long, and where ? 

Ans. I have been in the habit of lecturing and giving experi- 
mental lectures on science since 1837, on all the various branches 
of natural philosophy; I have lectured before the Providence Me- 
chanics' Institution, the Lowell Mechanics' Association, the Salem 
Mechanics' Association, the Marblehead Lyceum, in Newport, 
Great Falls, Boston, repeatedly, and other places ; I also assisted 
Professor Siiliman in the winters of 1841-2 and 1842-3, in his 
lectures before the Lowell Institute, and I also assisted Professor 
Lovering in his lectures before the same Institute. I am con- 
stantly making experiments on scientific subjects ; my business is 
of such a nature that it is one constant series of experiments from 
beginning to end. 

4th. Have you known Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston; how 
long, and how intimately ? 

Ans. I should think I had known him intimately for ten or 
twelve years, or fifteen ; I should be certain it was fifteen, and 
might go back farther than that, quite intimately; I have been ; 

associated with him by lecturing before the same associations with 
him ; he has been to my rooms and had conversations with me on 
various subjects — scientific subjects. We belong to the Warren 
Club together, and the Natural History Society. 

5th. Do you know Dr. William T. G. Morton ? When did 
your acquaintance wdth him begin ? 

Ans. I do know Dr. Morton ; my acquaintance with hira began 
in the summer of 1846. 

6th. Have you any connexion of blood, marriage, or business 
with him, or have you ever had ? 

Ans. No, sir, 

7th. Please to state the circumstances of your first acquaintance 
with iiim ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton visited ray rooms to procure some instrument 
for exhausting the air between the plate and the gums, in matters 
of dental operations ; that was the object of his visiting my rooms^ 
and then a conversation ensued with regard to the whole subject 
of atmospheric pressure ; he came several times in relation to the 
subject. On one of these occasions, as he came up the stairs, I 
met him, and made some remark like this: " Whether he had sat- All this 
isfied himself that 1 was correct in the impracticability of the ^^ ^^^^ 
process which he proposed." His answer was, that he was en-p^ior^' to 
gaged in another matter of much greater importance. After some 28th Sept. 
little conversation in reference to the first subject, that is, the at- See answer 
mospheric pressure, I think we went down stairs together. Before interroga- » 
we went down stairs, however, he asked to see some India-rubber torv. 



234 

bags, which he said he had seen below. I showed him the bags 

in the room below, and after examining them, he asked me if they 

would hold ether. My answer was, that I thought not, because 

ether was used to soften rubber ; that I knew it, because I had 

Yet Dr. softened the common India-rubber flasks or bags, and then, by in- 

whole^ca^se ^^^^^g them, produced large bags of rubber, extremely thin. He 

depends on then inquired whether, in my opinion, oil-silk bags could be used. 

the pre- 1 told him that oil-silk was made by filling the pores of common 

i!?^^i!^ on^K silk with a preparation of linseed oil : that I presumed it would 
on the 30th ^^K t u i ^- i i i j • i x- 

Sept. 1846, ^ot answer, but as i had no practical knowledge m relation to 

Morten was that matter, I advised him to call on Dr. Jackson, who could 
wholly ^g- probably give him the necessary information. Dr. Morton replied 
cther.*^ and that he was acquainted with Dr. .Jackson, that he had been a stu- 
received dent with him, and I think resided with, or was acquainted with 
the first }^ig family, and was surprised that he had not thought of inquiring 
itfrorahim. ^f him before. He then left me. I believe that is all the conver- 
sation vrhich took place at that time. 

8th. Did you have any conversation with Dr. Morton at that time, 
or when, on the subject of mesmerism? State all that was said. 

Ans. At this time we were examining the bags down stairs, 
which were taken from a drawer, when Dr. Morton asked my 
B^ opinion of mesmerism. My reply w^as, that I had but little faith 
in it, for although some parts of it were inexplicable, yet I be- 
lieved that much of it was due to the imagination. As to the 
This far- power of the imagination upon the mind of an individual, I stated 
?% ^ih' ^^ ^^^^' ^^^^ ^ ^^^ recently read an account of an experiment upon 
fact that ^ criminal by some surgeons, who proposed to bleed him to death, 
this was instead of which they blindfolded him, laid him in a proper posi- 
pnorto the A-^j^^ ^j,^j ijai^^jaggd hjg arm, and after pricking the skin, they 
with Jack- caused warm water to trickle dow^n his arm, as if the blood was 
SOD, as he flowing. He supposed that he was bleeding, and with this idea 
himself ^|ng surgeons observed his pulse to fall gradually, until, when they 
ton^ nar-^^^^ ^^ remove the bandage, they found that the man had died 
rated the under the experiment. My impression is that Dr. Morton said 
anecdotes something of this kind, that it was a very singular circum.stance. 
+heii '^ ^^ stated, ^^:hen he left me, as I recollect, that he should go to 
Dr. Jackson's and find out about the elieet of the ether on the bags. 
9th. When Dr. Morton asked you if the India-rubber bags 
would hold ether, did he mention what kind ot ether he was in- 
quiring about? What was it? Are you sure? and why? 

Ans. I asked him, when he asked me the question, ''if it was 
a^ sulphuric ether.'' He said it was. I am sure, because of the sub- 
sequent conversation with him of the effect of the ether in soften- 
ing the bags. I knew of no other kind of ether which would 
K^ have that, effect. When he asked me about the effect of ether 
upon the bags, my first question to him was, " I suppose you 
mean sulphuric ether," and he replied " that he meant the com- 
mon ether." I think these were his w^ords. 



235 

lOth. Did you, or not, consider it material, before answering 
his question, to hear whether it was or not sulphuric ether that 
he referred to ? 

(Objected to, as the mere opinion of the witness as to what he 
deemed material.) 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

11th, Was the information you gave him based upon the sup- 
position that he was inquiring about sulphuric ether ? Had it 
been nitric, or chloric ether, couid you have given him the same 
answer, or any answer? 

Ans. The information which I gave him was based upon the «£ii 
supposition that he was inquiring about sulphuric ether. I knew 
that there were various other ethers, but I had no knowledge of 
their effect upon India-rubber or organic substances. 

12th. State all the subsequent interviews between yourself and 
Dr. Morton, relating to these matters. 

Ans. My impression is, that the next time I saw Dr. Morton 
was in the cars on the Worcester railroad, when he was going to 
West Needham, and I was going to my family, who were boarding 
at Dover. I w^asin the habit of going to Dover in the five o'clock 
train, Saturday afternoon, and remaining with them until Monday 
morning. On several of these occasions, in the cars, I met Dr. 
Morton, and had conversation with him. I don't recollect any 
particular conversations with him on this subject, in the cars. 
The conversations were rather of a desultory character, in refe- 
rence to the subject of dentistry. My family went to Dover on 
or about the first of August, 1846, and returned on the 28th of . ^^^is date 
September. There were not many persons in the car on the ^^y jt fixed^v 
of oar return from Dover to Boston. Dr. Morton got into the entries in 
cars with rne at West Needham. After some little time, I spoke ^^r. Wight- 
to Dr. Morton, who had in his hand a boquet of flowers. I made ^^^^^ ^^^ 
some inquiry about them. He stated that they were from his p, 256,) 
garden at West Needham. I told him that I was returning with The origi- 
lay family to Boston, and he inquired if it was Mrs. Wigutman °^^.^,5^^^ ^^ 
Y/ho sat with me. He then asked me if I would accept of the cut " from 
flowers for Mrs. Wightman. I gave them to her. [She then the book 
whispered to me aiiil asked me who it was. I replied that it was ^" this ex- 
Br. Morton, and introduced them, I believcj though 1 am not ig'anne^j^^ 
certain. She inquired of rne who Dr. Morton was. I stated to to this de- 
her that he was a dentist, who was experimenting upon the relief P^^j*^^°' 
of pain in dental operations, or something substantially to that ro"utory.^'^' 
effect. I made the remark that Dr. Morton %vas trying to keep 
it secret, but that I thought I knew what it was.] From tha't The part 
time, I don't think that I had any interview with Dr. Morton for of this an- 
a long time afterwards. The next interview, as near as I can f"^^^ , ^^" 
recollect, which I had with Dr. Morton, was one morning passing i^*^ ^clearly 
down Tremont row, I met Dr. Moiton opposite the Pavilion competent 



236 

f^^'hi^?* Hotel. He asked me to step into the ofSce of the hotel for a few 

show ^'the i^o^ents, stated that he had never settled with me for the articles 

impression which I had furnished in his experiments, and desired me to make 

on the wit- out a bill. I told him that I believed I had no account with him, 

at the time *^^^ the articles were very trifling, and as he had been in the 

' habit of taking articles and then exchanging them, I thought I 

had no entry of them in the books. He expressed his regret, and 

wished me to look over the books to see if 1 had no charge against 

him, of any dates. In conversation with him on that occasion^ 

he stated to me that there was some disagreement between him 

and Dr. Jackson, and that he was very desirous of fixing the time 

that he (Dr. Morton) first began his experiments upon ether. I 

told him that I did not then think of any way by which I could fix 

the date of his visits to my rooms, but I would examine the books 

carefully, and see if there were any entries which would aid in 

fixing the time. The lesult of this examination was that I had 

^^^^ no charges against him of any kind, but it occurred to me that 

the subject was introduced in the cars, on the return of my family 

D5^ from Dover. I then examined my cash account, and found entered 

on the 28th of September, 1846, " Cash paid, expenses from 

Dover.'' 

(The portion cf the answer in brackets is objected to. J. P. P.) 
There are subsequent entries in the same book on the 29th and 
30th of September. I stated the result of this investigation to 
Dr. Morton. I was mistaken in saying that this interview with 
him at the Pavilion was the first which I had had after meeting 
him in the cars on the 28th of September. Shortly after my re- 
turn from Dover, early in October, Dr. Morton procured of me 
Q^" several articles of glass apparatus for the purpose of inhaling 
ether. At that time I knew it. He stated to me what he wanted 
of the articles. I think he said that he wanted the apparatus to 
breathe ether. I asked him if it was not dangerous to the lungs. 
He said no ; that Dr. Jackson said it was not, and that he had 
tried it hiro.self. He took, at that time, several glass articles. I 
don't recollect particularly what these articles were. One of them 
was a globe receiver, I think. A few days afterwards he came 
to me and asked me to fit him up a piece of apparatus, as Dr. 
Warren was to administer the ether at the hospital the next day. 
I told him I was very busy, but, at his earnest solicitation, 1 fitted 
up a glass globe receiver, by attaching a pipette, or dropping 
tube, to the tubular of the retort, by means of cork. I used a 
round rasp to perforate the cork to admit the pipette, and then 
made with the same rasp some grooves on the outside of the cork 
to admit the air into the globe to mix with the vapor of the ether. 
Dr. Morton stated to me that it was necessary that the air should 
be mixed with the. vapor and breathed. He took it away and ex- 
pressed himself satisfied with it. He was much excited at thii 



237 

time, i recollect very distinctly thai part of it. From that time 
I think I had no interview with Dr. Morton until 1 met him at 
the Pavilion. 

I'Sth. Please produce your cash-book, that it may be marked by 
the magistrates; and copy from it the entries of which you have 
spoken, and make them a part of this answer. 

Ans. I will annex the original leaf from the book. ^tq 

14th. Did your wife come in the cars with you and Dr. Morton 
on any other day after your removal into the city from Dover, on 
the 28th September? 

Ans. No, sir. Nor did Mrs. Wightmaii come into the city from .^^i! 
the time of our going to Dover until the time of our return on the 
28th of September. 

15th. Did you ever more than this once meet Dr. Morton in the ^^£j\ 
Cars, when Mrs. Wightman was with you? 

Ans. No, sir. 

16th, Did you ever, yourself, when alone, meet Dr. Morton in 
the cars, on your way into the city? What was your hour of 
coming in ? 

Ans. I think not. My hour of coming in was usually the first ^^£^ 
train in the morning. 

17th. How did yoa happen to meet him when you had your 
family with you? 

Ans. Because, bringing in my family, I took a later train thaw .^^ 
usual. 

18th. When you told Mrs. Wightman in the cars that Br. Mor- 
ton was experimenting to relieve pain in dental operations — that 
he tried to conceal it, but you thought you knew what it was ; on 
what did you base your opinion or belief, and to what did you refer ? 

(This question objected to, as inquiring of the opinion of the 
witness, and not of a fact, and also of conversations between the 
witness and his wife. J. P. P.) 

Ans. Conversations with Dr. Morton. ^^^^^ 

19th. With what did you then suppose him to be experimenting? 

(This question objected to, as inquiring of a supposition.) 

Ans. With sulphuric ether. ^^-53 

20th. Why did you suppose that it was for the alleviation of 
pain in dental operations that he intended to apply the ether? 

(Same objection as to the last.) 
■ Ans. Because, he being a dentist, and conversing upon that^n 
subject, I received that impression. 

21st. Had you in your said conversations %vith Di'. Morton be* 
fore this time told him anything about experiments in taking ether, 
and the effects ? 

Ans. I can't fix the date, but I recollect conversations with him 
on that subject, as to the exhilarating effects of ether, but whether 
before or alter that time I could not say. I told him that the ex- 
hilaration of ether, or its substitution for exhilarating gas, was not 



238 

imcommon ; that when Mrs. Wightman was a school girl, she and 
her companions used to sprinkle ether on their handkerchiefe, and 
produce an effect something similar to the exhilarating or nitrous 
oxide gas. 

22d. Whether or not was this said in any connection with the 
conversation on Mesmerism? 

Ans. No, sir, I think not. I don't recollect any connexion be- 
tween them. 

23d. You have said that when Dr. Morton first called on 
you for chemical glasses, after this conversation in the cars^ he 
told you he ^vanted them for inhaling ether. Did he thea say for 
what purpose he wished the ether inhaled? 

Ans. Yes, sir, to produce insensibility, and my impression is that 
it had reference only to the extraction of teeth, at that time. 

24th. At the time you spoke to Mrs. Wightman in the cars, 
liad Dr. Morton ever told you that he was using ether to produce 
insensibility, or to relieve pain? 

Ans. No, sir. The first information which I derived directly 
from Dr. Morton, that he wns using ether for this purpose, was 
when he called upon me for tiie glasses, when he told me that Dr. 
Jackson had said that he. Dr. Morton, had tried it himself. He 
Consistent was not very open at first. I remarked to him that I had suspect- 
with his ed v/hat he was experimenting upon. He asked me what made 
fate?vitw'^^ me suspect it. I replied that I could hardly tell what made me 
with Dr. suspect it, that he had taken a good deal of pains to mystify it, 
Jackson, but various little circumstances led me to the conclusion that he 
was using ether for this purpose. I recollect a question put to me 
at this time by Dr. Morton, whether I smelt ether about him. I 
told him that I did not, but that I inferred it, or received my im- 
pressions, from the manner in which he had asked various ques- 
tions. This was early in October. I fix the time, early in October, 
because it was previously to the time of his coming in to procure 
the apparatus for the experiments at the hospital, which time was 
some days after this, and occurred about the middle of October. 
The time vv-hich I now speak of was the time when he came for 
the chemical glass. 

25th. Have you now with you your cash-book ? If yea, please 
produce it, and let the leaf containing the entries of August and 
September, 1846, be signed by yourself and the magistrate. Has 
this been done? 
KF^ Ans. I have the book, and the leaf has been signed by me and 
the magistrate. 

26th. Are you willing to cut this leaf from your book, and have 
it annexed to this deposition? If yea, please do so. Have you 
done so, and in whose })resence? 

Ans. I am willing. I have cut the leaf out, in the presence of 
05^ the magistrates, A. Jackson, Jr., counsel for Dr. Charles T. Jack- 
son, and R. H. Dana, Jr., counsel of Dr. William T. G. Morton, 



239 

and Dr. Morton, and I annex it as part of this, my deposition, 

(This leaf is annexed.) ,^ 

27th. To what does the entry of August 1st, on the sheet frora 
your account- book, refer? 

Ans. It refers to the taking* of my family to Dover. .^^Xl 

28th. What wa^ the fare of one person from Dover to Boston in 
1846 ? Could the entry of September 28th have referred to your 
own personal expense, without that of your family? 

Ans. The fare was fifty cents. The entry could not have re- ^^^ 
ferred to my own individual expense without that of my family. I 
do not recollect of having seen the entry before now since June, 
1848. When I answered the twelfth interrogatory, I answered 
from memory, without being aware of the exact terms of the entry 
of September 28th. 

20th. Have you had any interviews wiih Dr. Jackson, in which 
the dates on your book were matter of remark ? Please state all 
the circumstances. 

Ans. The first interview which I had with Dr. Jackson was in 
company with Mr. Joseph Peabody, respecting a communication 
in the Boston Daily Advertiser of March 5, 1847, and signed 
"E. W.'^ I do not recollect the particular conversation which 
took place at that time, but I stated to Dr. Jackson the grounds 
upon which 3 had made the statement to Dr. Morton ; and in my 
conversation stated to him that the dates were settled in my mind 
from their relation with an entry in my books. Dre Jackson and ^^r; 
Mr. Peabody endeavored to convince me that I was in error with 
regard to the transactions, during which Dr. Jackson becam^e 
considerably excited, and Mr. Peabody suggested that I should 
meet him, Mr. Peabody, at his rooms. This conversation was at 
my rooms in CornhilL Dr. Jackson then left, and I v/ent with 
Mr. Peabody to his rooms, in Burnstead Place, [where we went 
over the whole ground. I remained with him in conversation 
upon the subject, for, I think, more than an hour; the result of 
which was that I received no conviction from him that I had 
made any error in my original statements. Mr. Peabody stated 
to me, that he could not blame me for any views which I might 
entertain with regard to the subject, upon the evidence, and that n r ^ 
Dr. Jackson had other means of proving that he was the original ^^^^ finding 
discoverer, and requested me, that as I had stated to him and Dr. his first po- 
Jackson that the allusion to me in the communication in the Daily ^^.*^^!|]^ }|^^^' 
Advertiser of March 5th, was without my knowledge and con- ^ second, 
sent, and I considered it a breach of courtesv on the part of Dr. See below. 
Morton, I should have no further communication loith Dr. Morton 
tipon the subject, and stated to him, that as I had fully stated to 
him and Dr. Jackson all the circumstances with which I was 
acquainted in relation to the subject, that I should decline any 
communication with either party.] I met Dr. Jackson repeatedly, 
but without any allusion to the ether controversy. One day, ^^^ 



240 

sometime afterwards, I was passing Dr. Jackson's office in Somer- 
set street, when I met him at the door, and he invited me in. 
The subject of ether was soon introduced. I told him that it was 
not a pleasant subject to me, that I had stated all I knew about 
the matter in my note to Mr. Eo"w ditch, and avoided the subject. 
0^ He stated to me in substance that my dates might be correct, but 
whether they were or not, it made no difference with regard to 
the originality of his discovery, for that he had evidence to prove 
that his discovery was as far back as 1842. The subject was then 
DS^ dropped. 

(The part in brackets objected to. J. P. P.) 

^Oth. What w^as the substance of this article in the Advertiser, 

and who wrote it? What was the breach of courtesy to which 

you refer? 

This and -^^s. The substance of the article was a defence of Dr. Mor- 

the follow- ton's claim to the discovery of ether, and I learned irom Dr. 

iDg^ shevf Jackson and Mr. Peabody, that it was written by a friend of Dr. 

l^^tl^^it^in Morton's, Mr. Edward Warren. The breach of courtesy was the 

ilcSa JUS no '' . ,. i'ir»T 

partizan of reference to me by name m the communication, which referred to 
Dr. Morton, the information given to Dr. Morton, and engaged me in a con- 
to Dr Jack^ troversy between parties, without my consent or a knowledge of 
son. * the use which was to be made of it. 

3 1st. Please look at the History of the Massachusetts Genera] 
Hospital, by Mr. Bowditch, published in 1851, at pages 245 and 
251. Are the letters bearing your name there written by you? 
Ans. They are. 

32d. At the time the ether controversy began, with which of 
the parties. Dr. Morton or Dr. Jackson, had you been most inti- 
mate? Toward which of these parties, if either, had you the 
most general sympathies and inclination, irrespective of this ques- 
tion, before that time ? 

(Objected to as immaterial.) 
^^^^ Ans. I had been the most intimate with Dr. Jackson, and had 
the most general sympathy and inclination towards him before 
K^ that time. 

ood. Is your memory good, or otherwise, as to power of re- 
Tkebooi- tention of occurrences taking place under your own observation? 
tke looic— How far so, as you have observed? 

there is no j^^iS, I Consider my memory very good and very retentive with 
7hll'^^ regard ' to circumstances, and particularly with regard to the 
2^%. ' minutiffi of them. 

84th. State as nearly as you can the dates of these interviews 
with Dr. Jackson. 

Ans. I cannot state anything in regard to those dates, with 
certainty, except the first one. That was on the 5th of March, 
the date of the appearance of the article in the Advertiser. The 
second interview was, I think, but a short time previous to my 
letter to Mr. Bowditch of February 10, 1848. I desire to cor- 



241 

rect my statement made in answer to the 29th intenogatcry, in 
which I refer to my interview "svith Dr. Jackson, at his house in 
Somerset street. 1 said in that answer, that I told Dr. .Jackson 
that I liad stated all I knew^ about the matter in my note to Mr. 
Bow'ditch. I wish now to say, that I said to Dr. Jackson that I 
had avoided conversations upon that subject with every one, that 
I had not seen Dr. Morton nor any of his friends since the con- ...£0 
versation w4th Mr. Peabody in March, that it vgas not a pleasant 
subject, and 1 had avoided it as far as possible. 

3oth. Why did you give the letter to Mr. Bowditch, if you had 
told Dr. Jackson and Mr. Peabody that you intended to have no 
further communication with either party .^ 

Ans. On the receipt of Mr. Bowditch's note to me desiring in- 
formation, to which my letter of February 10, 1848, was an 
answer, I hesitated as to the propriety of my writing upon the 
subject after what I had given Mr. Peabody to understand. I 
then considered, that in the recent interview which I had had with 
Dr. Jackson, nothing which I should state to Mr. Bowditch would "^^ 
vitiate Dr. Jackson's claim to the discovery in 1842. I had also 
been repeatedly addressed upon the subject by different indi- 
viduals, and I considered, that as the letter was to be used in a 
report not drawn up by either party, it would give my statement ^^£^ 
publicity in a more agreeable manner than any other. That was 
a strong motive. 

86th. When Dr. Jackson lold you that he did not care whether 
your dates were correct or not, as he could substantiate his dis- 
covery as far back as 1842, what reply, if any, did you make? 

Ans. I said that I vvas very glad to hear that, as it would re- 
lieve my mind of responsibility with regard to statements which .^£0 
I had made in the controversy, which statements had reference 
only to 1846. 

87th. Have you had any interviews with Mr. Lord, who was 
Dr. Jackson's attorney ? State all the circumstances. 

Ans. Previously to the publication of Mr. Lord's defence of 
Dr. Jackson, in June, 1848, a gentleman called at my rooms, and 
said that .he wished to see me about the ether controversy be- .^^^n 
tween Dr. Jackson and Dr. Morton. I replied that my business 
engagements w^ere such that I must decline to enter upon, any 
conversations with regard to the matter. He then left, and 1' 
was subsequently informed by some one, whom I don't now 
recollect, that one of Dr. Jackson's counsel had called upon me, 
and I had refused to give him any information with regard to 
the subject. I replied that a gentleman called without intro- 
ducing himself, and that it was his fault if he did not get the 
information he wished ; for I should certainly have given him, as 
counse^l for Dr. Jackson, any information which I poss(?ssed as freely 
as to any one. A short time afterwards I was w^^ited upon bv 
a gentleman, who stated to me that he was Mr. Lord, and was 
16 



242 

counsel for Dr. Jackson, and he wished to go over the subject of 
the ether controversy with me. He sat down in my room, and I 
stated to him all the circumstances with which I was acquainted, 
Then the and exhibited to him my cash-book, with the entries of Septem- 
covSy in' ^^^ ^^' 1846. At this interview, allusion was made to his 
'42 became brother having called on me, and I explained to him the reason 
inevitable, of my not having communicated with him at that time. 
(This answer is objected to by Mr. Jackson. J. P. P.) 
•38th. Did you know the gentleman who first called ? Did 
you know the capacity in which he acted ? 

Ans. I did not know him, or of his being in any way con- 
nected with the subject. 

Cross Interrogatories by A. Jackson, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. (/an you state what method Dr. Morton proposed ia rela- 
tion to atmospheric pressure, as referred to by you in ansvi^r to 
7th interrogatory ? 
_ Ans. Yes, sir ; he came with the idea that I could make a 
examina-^ syringe for him, to be connected by a tube with a plate, through 
tion will be which the air might be exhausted between the plate and the gum 
iound to iji dental operations. He supposed that, after exhausting the 
the\^?timo- ^^^' ^^^ syringe could be detached, and the orifice closed and the 
ny in chief, vacuum be retained. 

and not to 2d. Whether or not he came frequently about this matter of 
S^ anTsin- atmospheric pressure ? If aye, how frequently ? 
gle particn- Ans. I think he came not more than two or three times. 
lar. 3d. Can you state, from Dr. Morton's conversations with you, 

which you have referred to in 7th interrogatory, what degree 
of knowledge about this subject of atmospheric pressure he 
showed ? 

Ans. I think he understood the subject of atmospheric pres- 
sure, but was entirely mistaken in his ideas of the manner in 
Avhich it could be produced — I mean produced between the plate 
and the gums. 

4th. What do you know, if anything, of any use by Dr. Mor- 
ton of any substances — any of the various kinds of ether — for 
deadening the sensibility of carious teeth ? 

Ans. I have no knowledge of any conversation with him on 
that subject. I think the subject was never introduced. 

5th. If I understood aright, in answer to 12th interrogatory, 
you stated that ^-'the conversations in the interviews between 
you and Dr. Morton in the cars related to dental operations" — 
was that so ? 

Ans. Yes, sir ; I think they were. During the interval of five 
or six weeks, while my family was at Dover, I met him, I should 
think, three or four times certainly, and perhaps five times. The 



243 

€ars were generally about an hour in going from here to West 
Needham. There were two or three subjects in reference to 
dentistry which we spoke of. I suggested to him a method for 
preventing the shrinkage of the moulds affecting the plate. 
This matter of the syringe came up several times. 

6th. When Dr. Morton came to your rooms, as you have said, 
in answer to 7th interrogatory, did he purchase a bag of you ? 
If not, did he o;ive any reason for not purchasing any ? 

Ans. He did not purchase a bag of me. I don't think he 
gave any reason for not so doing. I supposed, from the reason 
that I gave him at the time, that the ether would soften the «^ 
rubber and act upon the oil-silk, that he did not think that he 
wanted it. My impression is, that I advised him not to try it 
without further information. 



7th. What kind of gas-bags did Dr. Morton examine 



Ans. Those made of India-rubber cloth^ which we usually 
have for the chemists to retain gasses. 

8th. Were these gas-bags of different sizes ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

9th. Were not yours, or some of yours, large bags ? 

Ans. They would hardly pass for large bags ; they ranged 
from one to three gallons. 

10th. Do you know, or did you at that time know, of any 
other persons than yourself and Mr. Chamberlain that had any 
India-rubber cloth bags f -r sale? 

Ans. No, sir. The India-rubber companies have bags of a 
similar kind, of various sizes, but they are not fitted with a con- 
nexion to attach stop-cocks, as used by chemists in experiments. 

11th. Do you know certainly the time of Dr. Morton's pres- 
ence in your rooms, when the conversation detailed in answer to 
7th interrogatory was had concerning India rubber bags ? 

Ans. N03 sir ; I do not know the time certainly. It was cer- 
tainly previously to the return of my family from Dover, 

12th. You have stated that you furnished Dr. Morton with 
some articles of glass apparatus — was any conversation then had 
about India-rubber bags ? 

Ans. No, sir. All the conversations in reference to glass ap- 
paratus were in October. 

13 (h. Did Dr. Morton get any glass apparatus for the purpose 
of inhaling ether from you before the time you have spoken of 
as early in October, 1846 ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

14th. How long an interval was there between the time when 
he came lor information about atmospheric pressure, and the time 
when he came for an apparatus by means of which ether should 
be administered in the hospital ? 

Ans. As near as I can recollect ; several weeks certainly. 
15th. In your answers to 7th and 8th interrogatories, have you 



244 

fully stated all the conversation you had at the times there referred 
to with Dr. Morton ? 
Ans. No, sir. 

16th. Whether or not your first answer (an answer not written) 
to 10th interrogatory, before any explanation by Mr. Dana or 
Mr. Putnam of the meaning of 10th interrogatory, was " no, sir" 
— "my inquiry of him was a casual remark?" 

Ans. I don't recollect distinctly about it, whether I made use 
of those precise words or not. I certainly did not intend them 
to be the answer to the question. The answer as now written is 
correct, and I don't wish to vary it. 

17th. Was the conversation at the interview you have spoken 
of, as asked of you by Dr. Morton in the office of the Pavilion, 
in reference to payment by him of his bill, or to induce you to 
render him some service? Can you tell the time of this inter- 
view ? 

Ans. I did not understand it as asking of me any service. I 
have no means of fixing the time or date of this interview, but it 
was some considerable time previous to March 5, 1847, be- 
cause the conversation with Dr. Morton had passed from my 
mind, until it was brought up by Dr. Jackson's and Mr. Peabody's 
visit, with the article in the Daily Advertiser. 

18th. Did Dr. Morton propose to pay your charges ? 
Ans. Yes, sir. He said he wished to have the bill, so that he 
could settle up all those matters. 

19th. What else, if anything, did he say about dates of 
charges ? 

Ans. As near as I can recollect, he said, when I told him that 
I did not recollect of making any entries, that Dr. Jackson and 
himself had disagreed upon some matters in relation to the dis- 
covery, and that Dr. Jackson claimed the whole as his own, and 
D^ he wished to show by dates of transactions, if possible, that it 
was not so. That is in substance what he said. 

20th. Please state the manner in which your books were kept 

as to accuracy ? Will you give some descriptions of your books?" 

^^^ Ans. I kept this book myself, and no entries of cash were 

made except by myself m the book. I consider it accurate. This 

0^" is the only cash book which I have. One part of this book was 

used for orders and transient accounts, and another part as a 

Q^^ record of my cash transactions, and this entry of September 28th 

was made in this latter part. This book includes all the cash 

transactions from January, 1844, to December, 1848. 

^o<^"^^^^ 21st. Were your books in your rooms so kept as to preclude 

enough ""to ^^'^^^ as to dates? \ . . 

charge Mr. Ans. Yes, sir. They were ahvays kept m my own possession, 
Wightman and no one else has access to them. 

Stries^o- ^^^' ^^ ^^ ^^^ y^^^ books show that you sometimes, or often, 
perjury. * omitted dates of charges, and put down names of charges simply? 



245 

Ans. Whenever a date is omitted, it is intended to refer to the 
next preceding date. I considered it unnecessary to repeat the 
date. 

23d. Is it not a matter of frequent occurrence with people in 
your business, as in a laboratory book for instance, to simply put 
down names and charges, and leave the dates unfilled ? 

Ans. I don't know w4iat the practice is of others ; it is not 
mine. Before I make an entry of an order or any entry, I always =^ 
first fix the date of it. This is necessary in my business ; for I 
should not otherwise know when an order came in, or when to 
take it up. 

24th. Whether or not your answer to 29th interrogatory was 
given after you looked at your letter of February 10, 1848, and 
made with the History of the Massachusetts Hospital by Mr. 
Bowditch, opened at the place where the letter is published ? 
And whether or not your statements as to dates have or not been 
based here to-day on reading your letters in said Massachusetts 
Hospital History ? 

Ans. I inquired as to the date of the article in the Daily Adver- 
tiser, and Mr. Dana handed me the History of the Massachusetts 
Hospital Society for the purpose of fixing that date, and that "=^ 
date was all I fixed by an examination of it. I have kept aloof 
from any information derived from other sources, supposing that 
it was my duty in my examination here to make up my mind 
w^ithout reference to them. The only information I have derived 
from reading my letters or that History, are as to the date of the 
letter in the Daily Advertiser, and the date of my interview with 
Dr. Jackson at his house in Somerset street, in connexion with the 
date of my letter to Mr. Bowditch. 

25th. In what book is that story found about the experiment 
of the surgeons in bleeding a criminal to death by the power of 
his imagination? 

Ans. I don't know, sir ; nor can I say where I read it, nor do 
I know that it is strictly correct, or that I repeated it to Dr. 
Morton correctly. 

26th. You have spoken of three interviews in your rooms be- 
tween yourself and Dr. Morton : one when he (iame about at- 
mospheric pressure ; a second when he came for articles of glass 
apparatus; and a third when you made apparatus by which ether 
was to be administered at the hospital. Can you now, in giving 
your account of what Dr. Morton said, and of your thoughts 
about what was to be used, and of your own impressions, so dis- 
tinctly separate them as to say what belongs to the first time, 
what to the second, and what to the third ? 

Ans. Yes, sir ; what I have stated is as clear on my mind as ^^^ 
though it was quite recent. 

27th. You have spoken, in answer to 18th interrogatory, of con- 
versations with Dr. Morton, from which you formed a certain opin- 



246 

ion. Have you, in answer to Mr. Dana's questions, given all 
these conversations, or the substance of them, from which you 
formed your opinion ? 

Ans. Not so fully as I could. I recollect now, since this ques- 
tion was put, the way in which the conversation about mesmerism 
came up. I inquired of Dr. Morton whether he had extracted 
teeth from persons who were mesmerized. I do not recollect what 
his answer was, but I told him I understood that they were ex- 
tracted w^ithout pain to the patient. My opinion is that he did 
not approve of it, but asked my opinion in reference to the subject 
of mesmerism. This is all I recollect now, in connection with 
what I have already stated, though circumstances might bring up 
something more. 

28tb. You spoke of attempts to extract teeth while the patients 
were under the influence of mesmerism — whether, or not, the 
public attention was, in the winter, and spring, and summer before 
October, 1846, very much given to the subject of mesmerism ? 
whether, or not, there had been very many public lectures on this 
subject ? and whether, or not, this subject was one of genera], 
frequent, and rommon conversation at that time ? 
Ans. I think so. 

29th. Whether, or not, you are perfectly clear in your present 
recollection of matters, and interview's, and conversations by you 
detailed, as to the time when they took place, or whether you 
have any ditficulty of recollection as to the order or priority of 
matters ? 

Ans. I have no doubt as to any essential points which I have 
stated ; so many circumstances have occurred from the outset of 
this matter until the present time, that I have a perfectly distinct 
recollection of everything, except, perhaps, so far as dates are 
concerned. It is different from what it would be were the subject 
now first brought to mind, after the lapse of so much time. 

-30th. In your answer to 4th interroo;aiory, you state that you 
have been associated with Dr. C. T. Ja(^ksou, by lecturing before 
the same association with him ; how did you mean — by aiding 
him, or joining with him in experimental scientific lectures ? 
q;^ Ans. I mean that I have lectured before the same associations, 
and on one or two occasions lectured in his place, when he could 
not, for some reason, fulfil his engagements. 

31st. By what you state in answ^er to 4th interrogatory, *• we 
belong to the Warren Club together," &c., did you mean "we 
both belong to the Warren Club." or how otherwise? 

Ans. I meant that we were both members of the Warren 
Club. 

32d. Did Dr. Morton ever, before early in October, (when, as 
you have stated in answer to 24th interrogatory, he called for 
glass,) call on you to procure, or contrive an apparatus for the 
inhalation of ether. 



247 

Ans. Not previously to that time; at the time he came for the 
glasses a conversation ensued as to the best form of a vessel foi* 
the purpose of inhaling ether; his object at that time was to ob- 
tain glasses already made, if possible, rather than to have some- 
thing made especially for the purpose. 

3^d. Whether, or not, early in your examination, you stated 
that you were '' troubled a little in respect to the priority of mat- 
ters f" 

Ans. I don't recollect it. 

34th. There was something said by you early in this deposition 
about the reaction of subsequent events on your mind. Can you 
recall that, and staiC what was meant by it ? 

Ans. I cannot recall it. 

35th. Do y®u remember the day of the vjeek when your family 
moved in from Dover, in 1846 ? 

Ans. On Monday. 

36th. Please look at the third paragraph in your letter before 
referred to in this deposition, beginning, " A few days after this 
interview Dr. Morton came to me for some chemical glasses,^' 
&c. Was this the interview before by you referred to in your 
answers to 12th and 24th interrogatories, as occurring early in 
October ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton came several times in relation to chemical 
glasses — I should say three or four times — and without letting me 
know at first what his object was. The interview referred to i.'i ^^g 
that paragraph refers to several interviews on this subject of 
glasses. I recollect his taking various shaped glasses and return- 
ing them several times in one forenoon, and in the course of a day 
or two the glasses were repeatedly changed, so much so that I ^£ji 
thought it useless to make any specific entry of any article which 
he took. It was not until after he had trietl and returned a num- 
ber of these glasses that I learned directly from him the object 
which he was procuring them for. Wherever the interviews which 
I have stated refer to chemical glasses, they are the same as those 
referred to in that paragraph of my letter. 

37th. In answer to 7th interrogatory, you have said that in an 
interview with you, Dr. Morton asked if India-rubber bags would 
hold ether, and if oil-silk bags could be used. In answer to 9th 
interrogatory, you say the words of his answer to your inquiry 
"if it was sulphuric ether," were, "I mean the common ether;" 
you have stated your opinion, or belief, or supposition of the pur- 
pose for which he intended to apply the ether. My inquiry is, if 
from what is here in this interrogatory stated, and what you have 
stated in answer to 27th cross-interi-ogatory, you formed such 
opinion, behef, or supposition ? 

Ans. The conversation in relation to the subject was more ex- 
tended in relation to the effects of mesmerism and ether at that 
time than I have indicated in my previous answers : not only the 



248 

subject of mesmerism and that of exhilarating gas, but also the 
effects of inhalation of ether was spoken of. I now recollect of 
speaking to Dr. Morton about the effects of breathing ether from 
Q^ a handkerchief, as referred to in my answer to 2 Ist interrogatory, 
at the time of the conversation with him about the India-rubber 
bags ; I think it was also at this interview that the impression was 
made upon my mind that Dr. Morton was seeking for some method 
to draw teeth without pain. 

38th. Do you feel confident that you can safely rely on the 
fidelity and accuracy of your memory in relation to what you may 
have seen some years ago ? 

Ans. Y'es, sir. 

39th. There seem to be two classes of mind : one very posi- 
^^^^ five, certain, confident ; a second distrustful, doubting, diffident. 

To which does your disposition and mind incline ? 
D^ Ans. Doubtful and difhdent until I am certain, and then I am 
obstinate and persisting, 

40th, Is your recollection of a past occurrence (as an experi- 
ment, for instance, in which you took an active part) so reliable 
that, if your view was decidedly controverted, you would still 
hold'to and maintain and stand by your view and opinion ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

41st. Have you or not been sometimes very positive that a fact 
was of a particular kind, and, on further investigation, have you 
not found that your original recollection, view, and, as you sup- 
posed, knowledge of the fact, was entirely erroneous ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of any such instance. 

42d. Have you in any instance, since the year 1846, relying 
on your memory, made a positive statement as to what you had 
previously seen or beard, and subsequently found that your mem- 
ory had proved false, and that that statement was directly con- 
trary to what you had seen or heard ? 

Ans. I have no knowledge of any such instance. 

43d. Do you remember assisting a gentleman of this city m 
This at- some philosophical experiments as to lateral jets of w^ater, some 

tempt to dis years ago? 
eredit is •' . ^^y 
simply ri- -^«S. Yes, SU\ 

diculous. 44th. Whether or not, after so assisting this gentleman, sOme 
years after, you conversed with him on that subject of jets of 
water ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

45th. Whether or not you stated your recollection of the ex- 
periment as a certain one, and he stated it to have been directly 
the reverse of your statement ? 

Ans. I alluded to the result of an experiment, and he stated 
that it was not so. There was no question of fact i^ regard to 
the matter, but it was a mere accidental remark. 



249 

46th. Whether after this, on the spot, you tried the expenmeot, 
and it turned out that he was right ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

47th, In this instance, after the gentJeman in question had stated 
the result to be just the reverse of your recollection of it, whether 
or not you continued to maintain with great confidence and posi- 
tiveness that you were right and he wrong, though he stated that 
he recorded the result of the experiment ? 

Ans. No, sir. The w^hole experiment refened to was one of a ^^^ 
series in which I aided Mr. Joseph Hale Abbott, of Boston, in 
regard to the pneumatic paradox and the passage of fluid through 
pipes. It was some years ago. The experiments were tried at 
his house, on an election day. A cistern of wood was prepared, 
and some lead pipes attached, and in an experiment upon the 
lateral pressure of the water upon the pipe, holes were made in 
different parts of the lead pipes for the purpose of observing the 
lateral pressure. That experiment referred to whether the hole 
was made in a thick or thin pipe. My impression was, that when 
the hole was made through the sides of the thick lead pipe, that 
the water did not issue from this hole until the thickness of the 
pipe had been cut away upon the outside, so as to destroy the 
tubular nature of the hole. Sometime afterward I made an inci- 
dental remark with regard to this experiment to Mr. Abbott, at =^i! 
my rooms, alluding to the singular result of catting away a por- 
tion of the tube. Mr. Abbott stated to me that I was mistaken 
as to the effect, and I took a piece of lead pipe, attached it to the 
water pipe in the work-shop, repeated the experiment, and found 
that Mr. Abbott was correct, which was pleasantly admitted on 
my part, and I am not aware of any recurrence of the matter 
having taken place since between Mr. Abbott and myself. 

48th. Whether or not, at the interview in your room referred 
to in 45th interrogatory, the gentleman in question said there was 
a lateral jet, and you said there was not, in the pipe leading from 
the cistern ? And this was the question in discussion ? 

Ans. Yes. 

49th. Had you been positive in your own opinion before you 
attached the lead pipe to the w^ater pipe in your room? 

Ans. I felt sure that it was correct, from its analogy to other 
experiments made in hydraulics. 

50th. In your letter of February 10, 1848, it is stated that 
" a few days after this interview, Dr. Morton came to me for 
some chemical glasses" — "in the course of the conversation I 
had no question in my mind but they were for experiments in 
ether." In the letter of June 15, is as follows : " A dentist 
making experiments about extracting teeth without pain " — " I 
have not the least doubt in my mind that the agent he intended 
to use was sulphuric ether." My inquiry is, if you formed the 



250 

opinion of his extracting teeth without pain from the conversation 
above referred to in the first letter, where chemical glasses are 
mentioned ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

51st. Vv^hether or not events subsequently occurring, after the 
ether discovery was published in the papers in Boston, may natu- 
rally have had some effect on your mind as you recall incidents 
which you state as occurring before ? 

Ans. No, sir; because there has been no reference in any paper, 
that I am aware of, to the incidents w^hich took place at these 
interviews. 

52d. Was the interview before referred to, when Dr. Morton 
came for chemical glasses, the interview^ answered about by you 
in answer to 12th interrogatory, beginning, " Shortly after my 
return from Dover, in October, Dr. Morton procured of me seve- 
ral articles of glass apparatus?" 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

53d. You stated, in answer to the 35th interrogatory, that you 
considered that your letter was to be used in a report not drawn 
up by either Dr. Jackson or Dr. Morton; whether or not you 
knew that Mr. Bowditch was the zealous advocate of Dr. Morton? 

Ans. No, sir. Mr. Bowditch stated to me that it was to be 
added to a statement in reference to the ether discovery, which 
was coming out in a report of the Massachusetts General Hospi- 
tal. 

54th. Before you wrote the letter of February 10, 1848, by 
you before referred to in answer to 35th interrogatory, had you 
verbally communicated to Mr. Bow^ditch the matters set forth in 
that letter? 

Ans. Some parts of it, but not entirely. 

55th. Whether or not Mr. Bowditch came to see you, or saw 
you several or many times respecting your letter to him of Febru- 
ary 10, 1848 — w-hether he was urgent with you to w^rite such a 
letter? 

Ans. He came once, and I communicated to him the informa- 
lly" tion which is embodied in the letter. He then addressed a note 
to me, I think the next day, asking me to write him what I had 
stated to him verbally ; that was all the urgency. I wTote my 
letter, and that is the last I saw of Mr. Bow^ditch. 

56th. Whether or not you ^vere aware, before your letter of 
February 10, 1848, ai:d if not then so aware, were you before 
the letter of June 15, 1848, that Mr. Bowditch was the advocate 
of Dr. Morton? 

Ans. I had read the Hospital report before June 15, and my 
ideas of Mr. Bowditch's position w^ere, that as he believed in the 
^^^^ original discovery of Dr. Morton, that he felt it due to justice to 
sustain it. How that would vie, being an advocate, I cannot say 
I regard an advocate as being a counsel. 



251 

57th. Please look at the last paragraph in your letter of June 
15, 1848, before referred to. How happened this to be there 
written? was it at the suggestion of any one? 

Ans. It was what I related to Mr. Bowditch before I wrote it. 
It w?s a suggestion of my own mind. 

5Sth. When you refer in your mind to the interview at the 
Pavilion, will you state whether Dr. Morton sought that — called 
you aside, or was it a chance meeting? 

Ans. It was an accidental meeting. I was going to my place 
of business, and met him accidentally on the sidewalk. The in- «£0 
terview did not exceed ten or fifteen minutes. 

o9th. Whether or not he called you aside into the hotel? 

Ans. He suggested our stepping in ; we were right in front of 
the door, and we stepped inside, as it was out of the street. 

60th. How long after you heard anything of this ether disco- 
very, did you know or hear of Dr. Jackson as the discoverer, and 
of the assertion by him of this fact ? 

Ans. The first I heard of Dr. Jackson's claiming the discovery 
as original with him, as well as I can recollect, was either upon 
the appearance of his letter to the French Academy, which I read, ^=£S 
or the interview with him and Mr. Peabody, with the exception 
of what I heard from Dr. Mortr-n at the interview at the Pavi- 
lion. 

61st. Is your memory clear that Mrs. Wightman and yourself 
came into Boston in the fall of 1846, and that Dr. Morton was in ^^^^ 
the cars, and that he offered a boquet to you? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

62d. Whether or not your memory as to the time is here aided 
by the iacts that it was the only occasion when Mrs. Wightman 
came into Boston that fall in the cars, and that the train was a 
later one than you usually came in by ; and whether or not your 
memory as to Dr. Morton's presence, and as to the place, is aided 
by the incident of the flowers? 

Ans. My memory is aided by all those facts, and my attention 
was called to them soon after by the interview between Dr. Mor- ^,£a 
ton and myself at the Pavilion. 

63d. Do you remember whether you introduced Dr. Morton to 
your wdfe, or told her who he was? 

Ans. I introduced him to her. 

64th. Whether or not the newspapers during the fall of 1846, 
and the winter following, very frequently had long articles con- 
cerning the ether discovery ? 

Ans. I don't recollect of any long articles; I only recollect 
simply a paragraph in the Transcript in reference to it. 

65th. You have stated in your answer to 12th interrogatory, that, 
though busy, you yielded to Dr. Morton's urgency, and prepared 
apparatus which he said Dr. Warren was to administer ether with, 
tihe next day at the hospital ; whether or not you were a good deal 



252 

interested, as a scientific person, in the new discovery of inhaling 
ether to prevent pain ; whether or not you read the various arti- 
cles published in the newspapers on that subject, and conversed 
with different persons about this ? 

Ans. I regarded the discovery as a very important one, and felt 
very much interested in it ; I read the paragraph in the Transcript 
and Dr. Jackson's letter to the French Academy, and possibly, 
though I don't recollect it, the letter in the Advertiser of March 
5, but they did not have any influence upon my mind. At the 
interview with Dr. Jackson and Mr. Peabody, reference was only 
made to that part of the letter in the Advertiser in which I was 
referred to. I have undoubtedly conversed with different persons 
about this subject. 

66th. Whether or not after, and as the various articles were 
published in the Transcript or other papers in the fall of 1846 and 
winter following, you spoke with Mrs. Wightman about this new 
discovery? 

Ans. Yes, sir. I think so. 

67th. Whether you remember to have said to her that '• this is 
the Dr. Morton we met in the cars," or something to this effect? 

Ans. I might have used those words, or I might not. The ge- 
neral subject was talked over with her a number of times. Mrs. 
0^ Wightman suffered very much from dental operations, and was 
anticipating at that time that she would have to have one per 
formed, which made it a subject of great interest to her. 

68th. Whether or not many persons called on you in behalf of 
2^ Dr. Morton, in the fall of 1846 and in the spring of 1847. If yea, 
who? 

Ans. No one. 

69th. Do you recollect that Edward Warren called; Dr. H. J. 
Bigelow, N. J. Bowditch, Esq. ; or did they call at a later time? 

Ans. The first time I saw Mr. Warren was a considerable time 
after the publication of March o. I recollect no call from Dr. 
Eigelow in reference to the ether question ; I met him at the Club 
and talked it over with him. Mr. Bowditch first called upon me 
when he called in reference to my letter of February 10 ; he in- 
troduced himself to me, and stated that he wished to procure all 
the information he could in reference to the ether discovery, for 
the purpose stated. 

70th. In your answer to 24th interrogatory, you speak of a time 
early in October that Dr. Morton came to your rooms ; that at first 
he was not very open. Will you please state whether or not the 
matter which was to be inhaled by means of the glass articles was 
spoken of by him as a compound or gas? 

Ans. I cannot say how ambiguous he was at first; if he alluded 
to any compound, it was a compound with sulphuric ether. 

71st. Had you then early in October read the account, or known 
of the experiment of extracting a tooth in Frost's case? Whether 



253 

or not you then believed the matter breathed to be sulphuric ether, 
or that this was one of the elements of a compound ? 

Ans. I don't recollect anything about Frost's case; the subject 
is new to me entirely. 

72d. Whether or not you at this time well understood that the 
object was to breathe gas to prevent pain, and that the mystifica- 
tion spoken of by you was about a "compound" or "gas." 

Ans. 2^0, sir ; I did not understand that it w^as a gas. 

73d. In answer to 29th interrogatory you go on to say that 
Dr. Jackson invited you into his laboratory, and had a conversa- 
tion with you about ether. In this conversation you fix the 
place (Dr. Jackson's laboratory.) In answer to 35th interroga- 
tory, you state this conversation differently. My inquiry is, 
when this conversation spoken of as had in the laboratory was 
held? 

Ans. The conversation took place in the front room of Dr. 
Jackson's office, in Somerset street ; I mean that when I speak 
of his laboratory. 

74th. Whether or not you said to Dr. C. T. Jackson when he 
stated, if you remember his statement, that it had been shown 
that Dr. Morton came to his laboratory on the 2d or 3d of Oc- 
tober, 1846, w^th a glass tube with a bulb in the middle of it, 
and an India-rubber bottle, that you were not ashamed to ac- 
knowledge you were in error as to the date, or something to that 
effect? 

Ans. No, sir; I never acknowledged any such thing, under 
any circumstances; I made no such admission. Dr. Jackson--^ 
may have said it himself, as he sometimes has done, and then 
supposed that I said it to him. The whole burden of the con- 
versation at that time was, that Dr. Jackson considered his claim 
settled, aside from anything I might say. 

75th. Did you not so say, or to such effects, in the telegraph 
office of Mr. Bain, in the Merchants' Row, after the opening of 
the office ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

Direct' resumed by Mr. Dana. 

1st. Do you recollect whether or not Dr. Morton took from 
your place a glass tube at the time he inquired about the gas- 
bag ? Might it not have been so ? 

Ans. He took a variety of articles, and be might have taken 
a glass tube. 

2d. Please refer to your answer to theSGth cross interrogatory. 
Did he or not take som.e chemical glasses from you bei^ore the 
28th of September ? 

Ans. He may, possibly, but I don't recollect particularly with 



254 

regard to that. The gas-bags were in the same room with the 

glasses. 

3d. Were there not places besides yours and Mr. Chamber- 
lain's at which India-rubber bottles or bags could be bought and 
filled with tubes or otherwise, so as to hold ether ? 

Ans. The small rubber bottles, sometimes called bags, are 
kept at the apothecaries, which might be used for that purpose ; 
they are used for attaching to pipettes or glass tubes, for the 
purpose of drawing liquids into them, instead of doing so with 
the mouth. My answer to the tenth cross interrogatory had 
reference to gas-bags only. 

Cross-interrogatory resumed hy Mr. Jackson, 

ist. Whether or not, throughout your deposition, you have 
always stated that the time when Dr. Morton got the glasses 
Avas in October, or early in October ? 

Ans. Yes, sir ; that is my impression. 

.JOSEPH M. WIGHTMAN. 

The following is the leaf referred to in my answers to the 12th, 
13th and 25th direct interrogatories : 

1846. 

Aug. 1. J.H.Abbott's bill. -^ $1 00 

3. W. S. Preble, Baltimore, for coils and 

bells 10 00 

3. Microscope, $2 25, W^ H. Channing's bill 3 42 

3. Test tubes, ^1, Prince Albert, S5 6 00 

5. S. Pickard for apps. to Illinois 135 09 

6. Professor A. Jackson in full- 34 00 

11. Dr. A. Page, for apps. 50 00 

Apparatus, $2 40, apps., i? 9 40 

13. Bath, Me., high school 200 00 

13. Rev. R. Stewart Greenville ----- 105 00 

18. Medical apparatus, S15,from Dockhami2 17 00 

Professor C. Mitchell & Phillips 137 83 

A. A. Young, for slides, ($109 50) 100 00 

24. Professor Cleaveland's bill 42 13 

J. Wittington, for apps. - — 11 75 

J. R. Rollins, balance- 2 50 

Dockham, balance 40 00 

Electric plate, A. Page 5 00 

J. Kingsbury's bill 6 50 

29. E. Tuttle, Utica bill 92 75 

Glass received. Porter's express 3 50 



255 



Aug 31. Professor L, R. Gibbes, in full, &c 46 90 

81. Diagonal pivot Kiachine 5 00 

1064 73 

Auff. 1. Railroad fare to Dover- - $2 50 

1. J. A. R., $9 27; Aug., $7 75; H. B., m 50 23 52 

4. Bookbinding, $27 57; papers, S3 75---- 31 32 

4. Rubber, $1; handles, 50 cents -- 1 50 

4. Punches, 75 cents; silk, 25- 1 00 

4. Charcoal, f 2 ; freight, 50 cents 2 50 

10. Bells, S2 ; cocks, SI ; kettles, 88 cents- - 3 88 

10. Iron castings 2 13 

10. Calipers, SI ; mahogany, $10 29 - - - 11 29 

10. A. Murdock, $20; J. A. R., $3 28—--- 23 28 

10. H. B., $6 83; Aug., $7 33 14 16 

12. Microscope, S4 ; A. M., balance, $6 46-- - 10 46 

13. David, on account - 5 00 

13. K. L. Blake, S8 40 ; D. C. Murdock, 50 

cents--- 58 40 

13. Paint for E.M. Z., $1 12; paper, 25 cents 1 37 

13. Hooper & Co., in full to July 118 92 

15. Freight 38 cents ; tacks, &c., 50 cents — 88 

15. Pyrometer plates, $1 50; oil, 25 cents 1 75 

15. J. A. R., $9 25; Aug., $6 65; H. B., 

S6 16 .--- 21 96 

15. Rent, Mothan, $6 ; boxes, E. H. L., $6- 12 00 
18. Disc't., 50 cents; nails, 25 cents; sand paper 

25 cents ---- 1 00 

18. Staging, $1 ; house, $1 50 ; Bertha, $3-- 5 50 
22. J. A. R., $8 72 ; Aug., $7 64 ; H„ B., 

6 85 23 21 

Fisher's bill - --- 9 00 

House, &c., $3 ; collecting, 75 cents 3 75 

29. J. A. R., $9 83 ; Aug., $7 42 ; H. B,, 

$6 85 - ------ 24 10 

Varnish and Japan, E. H. L --- 4 00 

Discount on bills, and wicks 25 

21. Silk for eiec'd., S5 ; house $1 50 6 50 

425 13 

Sept. 1. For retort - - ----- $0 38 

1. Apparatus - 6 36 

2. Chamberlain's bill .-- 40 92 

3. Mineral frame - - 1 25 

4. B. Pike, and pyric fires 15 00 

4. Henshaw& Co., forslides 43 00 



256 



The date 
of his con- 
versation in 
the cars 
with Dr. 
Morton. 



gept, 4. Mayiiard& Koyes----- $1 00 

4. J. Child, for apparatus « 10 25 

4. J. G. Kidder, for apparatus 27 04 

5. H. Pickard, Sackville, N. Y 24 15 

5. Eye model - 6 00 

11. Blowpipe -- 2 00 

14. B. J. Griscom'sbill - 146 13 

16. J. B. Dodd's bill, less jar 4 50- 

17. H. P. Andrews, for globe, &c 28 87 

18. J. M. Martiii, for apparatus 23 25 

23. Cotton for balance 3 37 

26. Dr. Wy man, for apparatus 20 18 

26. Dr. Sweetham. for apparatus 17 25 

26. Apparatus, $3 ; apparatus, 38 cents - 3 38 

28. J. E. Dawson, and interest - - - 97 75 

522 03 

Sept. 2. A. Peterson, on account- - - - $60 00 

2. D. Roland, on account 10 00 

2. Transcript to JuIy 1 2 00 

2. Freight, &c., il *50; freight, 38 cents 1 88 

2. Bits, 33 ; oil wicks, &c., il 50 1 83 

2. Crucibles, 75 cents ; sieves, 88 cents 1 63 

5. N. C. & Co., on account -- 100 00 

5. A. Murdock, in full 32 30 

7. House, $3 50 ; lead pipe, $18 53 22 03 

7. J.A.R.,$7 80; Aug.$7 45; H. B.,S7-- 22 25 

7. D. Davis, jr., on account 100 00 

10. Daniel Messer, in full 22 75 

12. House, S3; staging,^! 4 00 

12. J. A. R., $8 25 ; Aug. ^6 05 ; H. B., $7. 21 25 

12. Steel rods, $1 25 ; for sliding- 1 00 

12 . Worcester's Dictionary 8 00 

18. City and county tax. 37 50 

18. H. B. in full, to date - 5 43 

22. Postages in full 6 47 

28. Board bill at Dover 57 00 

28. Staging from Dover, &c 4 00 

28. J. A. R., in full, 2 weeks, S17 31 ; Aug. 

2 weeks, $1130 31 61 

28. Messer^s bill, July 1 ---- 11 00 

29. Sawing wood at house — - — 2 OO 

30. Cranberries, &c - 5 12 



566 05 



J. P. PUTNAM. 



257 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 



Suffolk County^ ' 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam of Joseph M. Wightman, taken before us upon the 
petition of Wilhara T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law. 
Boston, December 16, 1852. 

Boston, May 3, 184-5. 
Dr. Mori 01, 

Bought of Benj. B. Mussey, 

1 Hooper's Dictionary > Jii?3 00 

1 Duitt'is Surgery-- - 3 00 

1 Carpenter's Physiology --- 3 25 

1 Churchill's Mid. - 3 25 

1 Wilson's Anat. 3 25 

1 Watson's Pract. 3 00 

18 75 This is the 

1 Pereira's Mat. Med. 6 50 bookwhich 

contained 

^ _ -J - the pre- 
-^ !.'D scription of 

1 Webster'vS Chem - «- - 2 50 ether as a 

remedy for 

iyry ^^ accidental 
_ L__J_ inhalation 

■-- of cWoriDe 

gas, vix : 

Received payment, &c., E. B. Mussey^ thin«T which 

By, &C., &C. Dr. '^ Jack- 
son claims 
to have dis- 
covered in 
1842, three 
Boston, Septemher 30, 1"846. years after 
This is to certify that I applied to Dr. Morton, at 9 o'clock lio^oS 
this evening, suffering under the most violent toothache ; that book. The 
Dr. Mofton took out his pocket-handkerchief, saturated it with a hill shows it, 
preparation of his, from which I breathed about half a minute, ^"^'^^l^^^d 

I J.1 1 X- 1 T • i. J. T 1 1 ' hy Morton 

and then was lost m sleep. In an instant more 1 awoke, and saw inigif— lo 

my tooth lying upon the floor. I did not experience the slightest nionths he- 
pain whatever. I remained twenty minutes in his office after- J'^^!^.^^^' '"" 
wards, and i^\t no unpleasant effects from the operation. v/ith Jack- 

Eben H. Frost, 42 Prince Street, Boston. son. 

17 



258 

We witnessed the above operation, and the statement is, in all 
respects, correct — and, what is more, the man asked where his 

tooth was, or if it was out. 

A. G, Tenny, Journal Office™ 
G. G. Haydkn, Surgeon Dentist. 



Testimony : — Fully confirming Hayden, R. H. Eddy, C. 
^^ ^ ^^ Eddy, Gould, ^'c, that Jackson took no responsibility , and 
son's* at'eii- ^''^^y claimed to have made a suggestion. 
cy and con- 

w^th^'^'^e ^' -^^^^S ^' ^^'^^^^^^^' ^'^ Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
discovery Commonwealth of Massachusetts, counsellor at law, being first 
stated iV duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by R. 

Mvf^been ^' ^^^^^^' -S^'*' ^^^'' ^^^^^^^ ^^^ ^^' William T. G. Morton : 
composed 1^^' ^^^ J^^' ^^^^^ ^^^^ \on^ have you been, of the Boston bar? 

in the fol- What public office do you hold? What have you held within the 

lowing re- iggt ten years ? At what college did you graduate ? 

Morton viz^ Ans. I am a member of the Boston bar, and have been since 
"Why 1837. I am city solicitor of the city of Boston. In 1844-'5-'6 

don't yotj I was a member of the Massachusetts legislature, for the city of 
^J^^^t,, Boston ; in 1843, for three years, I was a member of the city 

ETHER?" 'IT • ' r • r t • • • 

« Thus it council, and president oi it lor two years ; 1 was commissioner m 
has been bankruptcy under the late bankrupt law of the United States, 
held that in ^^^Y^:^^^ that was in force. I P-raduated at Bowdoin College, in 

oi-aer to %n- -.,|^ • ° ° 

validate « Maine. 

-patent on 2d. When did you first hear of the ether discovery? Please 
the ground g^^^g ^^ circumstances. 

tantee re~ ^^^' The first time I ever hesrd of the application of ether to 
mw^/rom surgical operations was from the lips of Dr. Charles T. Jackson. 
another the jf ^^.^g ^^ ^^^ Warren Club, I think, an association of gentlemen 
^J^fl^l^l, where scientific matters were frequently discussed. I had heard 
vention,itis mention made of some new discovery, around the room, which 
not enough seemed to make considerable impression, and I, or some one near 
fhV^ZakTd^'^^^ asked Dr. Jackson, who was present, what it was. He then 
idea or bare si-d.U(\ to me and, I think, one other gentleman— we were stand- 
possibility ij.g J3y ourselves — that some time previously Dr. Morton, a den- 
^'{ishin'^tJil ^^^^ ^^ ^^^^^ ^^^J' c^^^ ^o him to borrow a gas-bag, and stated that 
object °was he had an idea of filling it with atmospheric air, in order to work 
xuggested.'' -^^gQXi the imaginations of nervous patients, and induce them to 
^Jtents ^? submit to dental operations more readily; that Morton mentioned 
48. ' some experiment in France, upon a soldier who had been con- 



259 

demned to death, who had been induced to believe that his blood 
was running, which had such an effect upon his imagination as to 
have killed him actually; that he (Jackson) told him that that 
was a very pretty story, but there was no truth in it — and then 
asked Morton why he did not try ether ; that, sometime after this, 
Morton came to him (Jackson) in a state of great excitement, half 
x:razy I think was his expression, and said that he had found it, 
or had hit upon it, or words of that import — I am not positive as 
to the exact expression. Dr. Jackson then said that it appeared, 
from Morton's statement, that he had shut himself into a room ^^ 
and inhaled ether from a handkerchief, and found, by examining 
his watch before and after, that he had been insensible for some 
minutes, or had lost a fev7 minutes. Dr. Jackson said that he 
subsequently told Dr. Morton that he should charge him five -^ 
hundred dollars ; that he finally compromised it with Morton, by 
agreeing to take ten per cent, on something, I think on patent 
rights for this matter; and I think the Doctor added, with a smile, 
that he thought he should do better, or make more out of it, than 
if he had taken the five hundred. There was more conversation, 
but I do not remember the exact language; but I can state very 
decidedly what the impression was which was made on my own 
mind at the time, and that w^as, that Dr. Jackson regarded this 
affair not as a settled thing- cr not as a discovery that was to be .=£31 
anything remarkable in itS'- If, or one that was likely to be applied 
beneficially, in itself considered, but as rather opening the door to ..=£1] 
future investigation in that direction, that something might here- 
after be discovered that would stand the test of science and prac- 
tical experience. There was an obvious desire not to connect him- ^^£1! 
self, as a man of science, with it to any great extent, and he made 
use of some expression of this sort with regard to Dr. Morton, 
that he was a reckless, dare-devil fellow, and that he would kill ..^ 
somebody yet. I think that was his very expression. This was 
the substance of the conversation. I merely asked to see what 
the subject was, as there was a sort of buzz about the room in 
reference to something that had come up, 

3d. Did Dr. Jackson say that he had told Dr. Morton, or pre- 
dicted to him, what the effect of the ether would be ? 

Ans. No ; I think all that was said about ether by Dr. Jack- 
con, was, w^hy don't you try ether? I am very confident. I ..£G 
don't mean to say that I understood Dr. Jackson as detailing all 
he had said to Dr. Morton. 

4th. From anything which Dr. Jackson said, did you get the 
impression that he had discovered, before his interview with Mor- 
ton, or believed at the time of his statement to you, that total in- 
sensibility could be produced ? 

(Objected to as the impressions of witness. J. P. P.) 

Ans. No ; I did not so understand it. I thought Dr. Jackson ^£X1 
meant to tell Dr. Morton, what every man of science, or liberal 



260 

0^ education knew, thrit ether had some effect. I understood him 

as merely intending- to ask Dr. Morton, why he did not try ether, 

K^ as the best thing for the purpose which he knew of, and likely to 

have more effect than air. I state the impression which I got at 

the time from conversations. 

5th. When you say he seemed desirous not to connect himself 
with *^it," do you mean with the supposed discovery, or with 
Dr. Morton as an experimenter therein ? 

(Objected to for the same reason as the last. J. P. P.) 

Ans. My impression was that he had not a strong faith in the 

K^ thing itself; but that Dr. Morton would be a fellow who would 

push the thing through and sell patent rights, and would make 

0^" money out of it, and then it would fall through, and that this 

might open a door to direct scientific attention. There was more 

tt^ in the manner and look of Dr. Jackson, than in what he «aid. 

6th. At the time of this conversation, was anything said about 
any dental or surgical operation, or had there, as you recollect, 
been any performed ? 

Ans. My impression is that there had been, but I am not posi- 
tive. My impression is strong that there had been a surgical 
operation performed at the time, and that that was what had 
made the great impression in the room. 

7th. Did anything, and what, occur afterwards, to recall your 
attention to this conversation ? 

Ans. The conversation made a strong impression on my mind 
for several reasons. This subject of deadening sensibility to sur- 
gical operations, was one which I had thought of a good deal. I 
D^ recollect, a long time previous, expressing my surprise that sur- 
geons did not give something to deaden sensibility to pain, and 
expressed my belief that something of the kind would and could be 
easily discovered, and v/hen I first heard this, it made great im- 
pression on my mind, as a subject upon which I had thought, and 
as confirming my predictions. I recollect also thinking at the 
K^ tim.e, that the charge was a pretty strong one for the information 
given. Afterwards, I saw in print somewhere that Dr. Jackson 
claimed the discovery, which struck me as so utterly inconsistent 
D^= with his account of the matter, as before related, that it made a 
great impression on my mind, and strengthened the impressions 
d:F° which I had at the time of the conversation. 

8th. Had you anticipated, from your own thoughts of which 
you have spoken, that total insensibility which had been discover- 
ed, or only a high degree of insensibility or alleviation ? 

(Objected to as irrevalent, and inquiring of the impressions of 
witness. J. P. P.) 

Ans. I had never given the matter any investigation; but I had, 
on one occasion, suffered a great deal from a slight operation, and 
was peculiarly sensitive ever afterwards, to any kind of surgical 
operation ; and I had requested, in operations upon the teeth, to be 



261 

informed if something could not be given to alleviate pain. I 
recollect once inquiring of an apothecary, if there was not some- 
thing to be given for that purpose, and he told me there was no- 
thing better than brandy. Like others I had known of, and seen ^^n 
the experiments with the laughing gas. Probably no more had =^Q 
occurred to me on the subject than to every educated man. I 
had thought that total insensibility might be produced. I recol- 
lect once saying that I did not see why a surgical operation could 
not be performed while a man was dead drunk. 

9th. Have you any means of fixing the time and place of this 
conversation with Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. I am very sure that the place was at the meeting of this 
Club, at the house of Mr. Abbot Lawrence. I have no means of «^^ 
fixing the time. I should say it was the first time the club met at 
Mr. Lawrence's. 

Crois Interrogatories, by A, Jackson, jr., Esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. How long did this conversation last, as given by yo"i in 
answer to 2d interrogatory? 

Ans. It is impossible to state now; it was a short conversation, 

2d. Do you recollect who the other gentleman standing near 
you was, when Dr. Jackson spoke about this matter? 

Ans. I do not. 

3d. If I rightly understood one answer you gave, it was, that 
Dr. Jackson strongly ridiculed the idea with which Dr. Morton 
came of affecting the imaginations of patients. Was this so? 

Ans. No. He turned oft that French story in a curt sort of a 
way, but I don't know that he intended to ridicule the idea, but 
only to say that there was nothing in that story. 

4th. Did Dr. Jackson say anything to you of urging, or wish- ^,£a 
ing, or directing Dr. Morton to go to the hospital with the ether? 

Ans. No. 

5th. Do you remember the words which Dr. Jackson said that 
Dr. Morton uttered when he came back to him? 

Ans. I won't undertake to say that those were the exact words; 
I recollect distinctly ot his saying that Dr. Morton was very much 
excited. 

6th. Did Dr. .Jackson say that Dr. Morton wished to use the 
bag with atmospheric air on a nervous patient, or on nervous 
patients ? 

Ans. I think he said generally on nervous patients. 

7th. In what Dr. Jackson said of Dr. Morton as a reckless iei- 
low, was anything said by Dr. Jackson as to Morton's ignorance 
about inhaling the ether, the mode of inhaling it? 

Ans. No, I think not. I think all that was said about ether, 
was the expression I have used before, 'Svhy don't you try ether." .^a 



262 

I certainly got the impression from Dr. Jackson, that he did not 
regard Dr. Morton as a man of any science at all. 

8th. Whether or not. Dr. Jackson, in this conversation, under- 
took to give a full account of the matter, or how otherwise? 

Ans. I should think not. It was a conversational account, 
somewhat hasty I should think, though I suppose at the time 
that I had got the whole general history of the matter, as that 
was my object in inquiring. It was a thing which took my 
interest at once. 

9th. Did Dr. Jackson say anything about an extraction of a 
tooth, by Dr. Morton, from a person who had inhaled the ether ? 

Ans. I am not abie to remember about that, but I think he did 
not. 

10th. Was it spoken of, or knov/n at the time of this conver- 
sation, an account of which is given by you, that pure sulphuric 
ether was used in imhalation? 

Ans. That I am unable to say. 

11th. Whether your attention was called to this interview and 
conversation with Dr. Jackson lecently, or whether sometime 
ago ? 

Ans. When I fust saw a statement made by Dr. Jackson, 
B^ or his friends, I stated several times the conversation which I had» 
I am unable to say now to whom I first spoke of it. My atten- 
tion has been called to the subject several times. 

12th. Did Dr. Jackson state that he told Dr. Morton not to 
use the bag and atmospheric air ? If so, did he give any reason 
why he so told Morton ? 

Ans. Not to my recollection. 

13th. Did Dr. Jackson, in the conversation with you, speak of 
Wells and his experiments, or of vrhat Wells had used? 

Ans. No. 

14th. Whether or not, you recollect that Dr. Jackson stated 
that his answer to Morton's asking for a bag, or saying that he 
proposed to try atmospheric air, was ^' why don't you try nitrous 
oxide, or what Wells had used?" 

Ans. No. My impression is very strong, that the language 
D^=-was simply this, "why don't you use ether?" 

loth. V/hether or not, you recollect that Dr. Jackson, in this 
conversation, stated that he told Dr. Morton that he must get 
some pure sulphuric ether, when, as stated in answer to the 2d and 
3d interrogatories, the phrase is ''why not try ether?" 
^^^ Ans. I have no recollection of his making such a statement. 

16th. Whether or not, you recollect that Dr. Jackson said that 
he told Morton, after disposing, as you have said, in a curt man- 
ner, of the French soldier story, "I will tell you of something 
which will produce a real effect." 

Ans. I don't remember that. My impression is very strong 



263 

that the expression was just what I have used before^ ** why don't 
you use ether." 

17th. Whether or not, the state of excitement which Dr. Jack- 
son gave some account of in Morton, was said by him to have 
been shown by Morton at the time, and after he told him of using 
sulphuric ether. 

Ans. I understood him to speak of Morton's excitement when 
he came to him afterwards, and told him of having tried the ex- 
periment. 

iSth. Whether or not, Dr. .Jackson stated that the phrase 
which Dr. Morton used when he came back to Dr. Jackson's 
laboratory, after having been there before to borrow the gas bag, 
was, that "it succeeded perfectly," or something of such import? 

Ans. I don't recollect that expression, nor will I undertake to 
swear to the precise form of expression used. It was substantially 
that, that he had made a successful trial of the ether, 

19th. Do yoQ remember that you heard then from Dr. Jackson 
any statements as to the recklessness or carelessness of Dr. Mor- 
ton in his administration of the agent used for inhalation, or as to 
any disagreeable or dangerous accidents occurring from Morton's 
use of it ? 

Ans. No, 1 don't remember of his speaking specifically ; but 
the general idea I got was, that Morton was a rash sort of a man. 

2()th. Whether or not Dr. Jackson spoke warmly, and in an 
emphatic manner, of Morton as a rash fellow ? 

Ans. He spoke emphaticallv, certainly. 

21st. Do you recollect that the substance or agent used for 
inhalation to prevent pain was spoken of as then made public, or 
announced to the world, on the evening of this conversation, or 
that it was still kept secret ? 

Ans. I did not understand that there was any secret about it ; 
but I did get the impression that, although regarded as a remark- -^^ 
able development, it was not then considered as a great discovery 
which had stood the test of scientific investigation, or that its 
value had been thoroughly tested, and that it was still somewhat 
doubtful whether it would answer expectations. [I did not sup- 
pose at that time that Dr. Jackson himself, from what he said, 
believed that ether could be used in the manner, and for the pur- -£Ii 
poses for w^hich it has since been used — I mean as regards its 
safety, efSciency, and universal application to purposes of surgi- 
cal operations.] 

(The part in brackets objected to, as not responsive, and as 
matter of opinion. J. P. P.) 

22d. Eefore the evening referred to in your ansv»'ers, had you 
any acquaintance with Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. I had a casual acquaintance with him ; I had met him 
frequently. 



264 

23d. Do you recollect why you asked Dr. Jackson about what 
the subject was ? What called your attention to him ? 

Ans. I can't remember that, nor am I perfectly sure that I did 
ask him the question. Either I asked him, or some gentleman 
standing by me. 

24th. Whether or not you recollect that, in this talk about the 
room spoken of in answer to the 2d interrogatory, Dr. Jackson's 
name Avas mentioned in connexion with the new discovery spoken 
of? 

Ans. I don't remember that ; it might have been. 

2oth. Whether or not Dr. Jackson stated that the charge of 
five hundred dollars was for the right to use ether by Morton in 
his practice, or for a transfer to Morton, or a quit claim of the 
right to use it? 

Ans. I don't remember that he so stated. 

Direct resumed hy Mr. Dana. 

1st. Did Dr. Jackson, at this conversation, allude to any ex- 
periments performed by him on himself or others ? 
iTi^ Ans. No ; I should have remembered that if he had said it. 

2d. If you were informed that the first meeting of the Warren 
Club was at Dr. Warren's October 27, 1846, and the second 
meeting at Mr. Lawrence's November 13, should you say the 
meeting you attended was or not either, and which of these ? 

Ans. I should say it was the second meeting of the Club, 
because at the first meeting I was not present. I am also pretty 
positive that it was at Mr. Lawrence's. 

PELEG W. CHANDLER. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, / 

Suffolk County, _ j ■'^' •* 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam of Peleg W. Chandler, taken before us upon the 
petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
.Indices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law. 
Boston, December lo. 1852. 



265 



I, A. A. Gould, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk and com- 
monwealth of Massachusetts, physician and surgeon, of lawful 
age, being first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interro- 
gatories by A. H. Dana, jr., esq., counsellor, Dr. W. T. G. Morton. 

1st. Are you a physician ? how long have you been so ? how 
long have you resided in Boston ? 

Ans, I have been a physician for twenty-one years. Have re- 
sided in Boston since 1827. 

2d. Of what scientific societies are you a member or officer, and 
what officer, and how long been so ? 

Ans. 1 am a member of several societies, the American Acade- 
my of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, the 
Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, the Boston Society 
of Natural History, and others ; the Imperial Mineralogicai Soci- 
ety of St. Petersburgb, and two or three other foreign societieso 
I don't know that I am now^ an officer in any of thern, though I 
have been in a good many of them. 

4th. How long have you know^n Dr. Charles T. Jackson, and 
how intimately ? 

Ans. I first knew him some twenty-five years ago, and have =€^ 
been on as intimate terms with him as with anybody up to the 
last three or four years. 

5th. How long have you known Dr. W. T. G. Morton, and .=£1! 
how intimately ? 

Ans. I first knew" him in the autumn of 1846. I have met him 
very frequently since that time. 

6th. Please to state your first conversation with Dr. C. T. 
Jackson respecting the discovery of ether as an anaesthetic agent^ 
how it arose, and the circumstances relating thereto ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of what led to the conversation, and 
an indistinct recollection of precisely what was said. I alluded 
to the dental operations performed by Dr. Morton under the in- 
fluence of ether. It w^as probably three days after the first dental 
operation he said ''yes, I told him. It is sulphurine ether." I 
can't recollect anything definite. I recollect various things which 
^vere said, but I can't say whether they occurred at that interview 
or not. In substance he said, ''well let him go on with it, I donH See Chan- 
care what he does with it, if he don^t bring my name in vnth it.^^ dler and 
I had but little conversation with him at that time, as I thought^^^^^ ^^^~ 
he seemed to dislaim having anything to do with it, further than 
having mentioned that article to Dr. Morton. 

7th. At the time he said this, had there been any surgical ope- 
ration performed under the effect of ether at the hospital ? 

Ans. No, sir. 



nessog. 



266 ^ 

8th. At the time you had this conversation with Dr. Jacksoiij 
what had you heard or known respecting Dr. Morton's dental ex- 
periments with ether ? 

Ans. Mere rumors that such an operation had been performed 
by him, without pain, under the influence of something inhaled. I 
did not know, at the time, what it was. My wife first heard of it 
and told me, and I said " yes, that can be done, ether will do it." 
9th. What did you know at that time about the anaesthetic ef- 
fects of ether ? 

Ans. I simply supposed that it would produce momentary in- 
toxication. The thought which occurred to me was that, like 
D^ other substances inhaled, it would produce sudden intoxication, 
under which an operation might be performed without a patient 
taking cognizance of it. I knew the usual complaints for which 
it was administered, such as difficult breathing and cough, and dif- 
ficulty of expectoration. This could hardly be called anaesthetic 
effects, however. 

10th. Did you know of its use as an antidote to chlorine gas? 
Ans. I had heard it mentioned by Dr. Jackson, 
ilth. When was this? Please state all your recollections of 
what he told you ? 
Compare Ans. This was some time within three or four years previously 
tti^\ co^ t ^^ ^^^^ time. I recollect only his making a simple statement of 
of it given his having been nearly suffocated by chlorine gas, and of having 
byDr.J. at-used this as an antidote with great relief. 

ter J^ight- 12th. Did he at the time intimate any opinions that ether would 
were found produce entire insensibility to surgical operations ? 
fixed, and Ans. I can't positively state. I have an indistinct recollection 

1842 be- ijjgi- something of the kind was sometimes said in connection with 
came ue- . *-' 

cessary. ^^' 

13th. When, if ever, and what w^as said ? Did it relate to en- 
tire or only partial or possible unconsciousness ? 

Ans. I cannot recollect when or what v/as said, but I received 
the idea that he had only partial relief in view. 

14th. Please read the tv/elfth question? Have you any further 
answer to make thereto ? 

Ans. I would like to modify it and say that something was said 
about its producing relief from pain in surgical operations. I have 
no recollection of his saying at any time that it would produce 
entire, relief. 

15th. Was this stated by him as a discovery of a great truth, or 
as an opinion of something of possible value, or how otherwise ? 

(Objected to as leading. J. P. P.) 

Ans. I supposed it to be a speculation of his, not advanced as 
a possible discovery. 

(This answer objected to as the opinion of the witness.) 

I6th. Did you knov^* or believe that ether had the full anaes- 



267 

thetic power since demonstrated, at the time you heard of Dr. 
Morton's dental experiments ? '^^M 

Ans. I did not. 

17th. Did Dr. Morton apply to you to receive him and his fam- 
ily as boarders ? 

Ans. He did. This was in September or October, 1846. ^SM 

18th. Did you have any conversation — and what — with Dr. 
Jackson thereupon ? P^t this 

Ans. I consulted the family; but whether Dr. or Mrs. Jackson ^Jj^^^j^^^^ 
I can't say. son's* slan- 

16th. Did Dr. Morton, after that, come to board with you ? ders of 

20th. Did you have a conversation with Dr. J. C. Warren and discevery. 
Dr. Jackson together, on the subject of ether? When, and where, 
and what was it ? 

Ans. I reeollect one occasion distinctly. It was two days pre- 
vious to the first amputation at the hospital. I was conversing 
with Dr. Warren, at his house, I think, respecting the operations 
which had been performed — the operations on the jaw and on the 
arm — at the hospital. Dr. Jackson stood near. It was at a 
meeting of the Warren Club. I said to Dr. Warren, "Dr. Jack- 
son had something to do with it." Dr. Warren turned to Dr. 
Jackson and said, ** I understand that you have something to do 
with this ether matter." He said, *' Yes, I told Morton of it." 
Dr. Warren said, *• There is to be another operation on Satur- 
day : and he wished he would go to the hospital and administer 
it; making some remark on Dr. Morton's unprofessional position. 
Dr. Jackson said he could not go; for in the first place, he should j^^k*^^ ^-j^l 
leave the city for the south, and, in the next place, he had com- the author 
mitted the administration of it entirely to Dr. Morton. . Nothing of such a 
more was said, I believe. discovery? 

2 1st. Cannot you recollect Dr. Jackson's saying anything more 
about Dr. Morton ; his skill, or want of skill or science ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that he said anything. The conversa- 
^tion was very brief, 

22d. Please state all the circumstances connected with the first 
experiment at the hospital, and the preparations therefor. 
, Ans, The evening previous. Dr. Morton, whose oflice was op- 
posite to me, called to ascertain about the probable injurious 
effects of ether, and what articles might be used . I answered ; 
and in the course of the conversation I asked him how he gave 
it. He told me that he put a sponge in a globe saturated with 
ether, and drew the vapors through a tube attached ; breathed 
out and in through a tube attached. I suggested that the appli- 
cation of valves, to prevent breathing back the air into the globe, 
would be desirable, and sketched a plan. He said, " That is it ; 



268 

that is just it. I will have it for to-morrow." I advised him not 
to attempt it ; but to use what he was sure he would succeed 
with. He then left me. He took the plan which I had sketched 
away with him. I went to -the hospital, the next day, at the ap- 
pointed hour. Dr. Warren was about to commence the operation. 
He suddenly rose and turned to those present, and said he had 
Graphic forgotten that he had promised to allow Dr. Morton to give 
of *t"^ first ^^'^^^^^^^S which he thought would prevent pain, and he would 
operation wait. In about ten minutes Dr. Morton appeared with an inhaler, 
at the hos- with valves, such as I had proposed. He administered the ether. 
pitaL ^u iQQi^ej ygj-y incredulous, especially as the man became at first 

exhilarated; but suddenly the anaesthetic effect took place. This 
,j^^;5^ occasioned a start of surprise from all present. Dr. Morton 
coolly informed Dr. Warren that his patient was ready. The 
operation was performed, which v^as the removal of a tumor 
from the jaw. I recollect one other incident. Previous to the 
j^, — ^ operation, Dr. Warren, having waited ten or fifteen minutes, 
^^^^ again turned to those present and said, '' As Dr. Morton has not 
arrived, I presume he is otherwise engaged ;" apparently convey- 
ing the idea that Dr. Morton did not intend to appear. The re- 

^ ^ mark of Dr. Warren brought out a great laugh. Dr. Warren 

^*^^ then sat dov»^n to his patient. Just as he raised his knife Dr. 
Morton appeared. 

23d. Did Dr. Warren make any, and what remarks, to those 
present, in Dr. Morton's presence, after the experiment ? 

Ans. He made some inquiries of the man as to his having suf- 
fered pain, and he replied that he had felt something like scraping 
with a knife, during the operation. Dr. Warren seemed pleased, 
but said it would require further trials to settle its value. 

24th. Did Dr. Morton say anything to Dr. W^arren as to what 
it was he had used ? 

Ans. Not publicly. I saw, after the operation, that a conver- 
sation was passing between Dr. Warren and Dr. Morton, and ob- 
served the motions which Dr. Warren made : be nodded. I 
^^^ don't know of my own knowledge what passed between them. I 
told Dr. Morton, on the evening previous, when he called on me, 
that he had better tell Dr. Warren, before the operation, what it 
was he was going to use, as it would partly divide his responsi- 
bility, and Dr. Wairen would not abuse his confidence. He said 
he would ; but he arrived so late at the hospital that he had no 
opportunity. 
^f^";-^ 25th. Did any one else than Dr. Morton have any charge or 
^"^^^ control over, or give any advice as to the administering of the 
ether ? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 
^.^^^ 26th. Was Dr. Jackson present at this experiment ? 
*^^^^^ Ans. I did not see him. 



269 

27th. At the interview between yourself, Dr. Warren, and Dr. 
Jackson, at the Club, did Dr. Jackson say anything more than you 
have mentioned? 

Ans. I presume he did; but nothing that I can recollect. The 
conversation was very brief. I did not pay attention to all that 
was said. 

28th. Were you so that you could hear ail that passed between 
them ? 

Ans. It was in a crowd. I can't state our relative position 
after the conversation which I have stated. 

29th. Did any other interview on this subject occur between 
yourself, Dr. Warren, and Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. I believe not. I am very sure of it. Dr. Jackson left ^.!^^ 
the city, and I did not see him for several weeks after that. 

30th. Did you hear Dr. Jackson ask Dr. Warren to allow the 
ether to be administered at the ensuing amputation, or anything 
to that effect? 

Ans. No. The words relating to the athninistration of ether 
were almost verbatum what I have stated, and were introduced in '^^^3^ 
the manner I have stated. 

31st. Did Dr. Morton consult you, and how often, about ad- 
ministering ether to his patients ? 

Ans. He consulted me after having administered it several times, 
but not about administering it, except on the evening previous to 
the operation at the hospital ; on several occasions, when unpleas- 
ant effects followed the use of ether, 1 was called upon by Dr. 
Morton, or persons in his office, to advise what was to be done to 
relieve the effects of it ; it was to administer to the patient in 
each case. 

32d. Did you, and when, and at \vhose wish, v^rite to Philadel- 
phia, respecting the administration of ether there? 

Ans. A dentist from Philadelphia, whose name I have forgotten, 
called on me to ask if this new article was of real value ; I told 
him it was ; he purchased a right to use it ; not succeeding in his 
first attempts at Philadelphia, he wrote to me expressing his sus- 
picion that he had not been put fully into possession of the se- 
crets ; I replied to his inquiry; this was during the time patent 
rights \^ere disposed of; it must have been among the earliest 
which were sold. 

33d. So far as you could judge, did Dr. Morton conduct his 
administrations with reasonable skill, care, and success, or how h:S^ 
otherwise ? (Objected to as matter of opinion.) 

Ans. In every case in v/hich I saw him administer it, he did 
it so. 

34th. Was there, or not, and how long, any, and how great, 
effort made against the use of ether ? 

Ans. There was a strong prejudice against it in this city, and 
more especially elsewhere ; the administration of it was denounced ^z^^::^ 



270 

generally, and many articles were written against it in the medical 
^S* and daily journals ; I don't know any particulars further than 
writing articles and denunciations in private conversations. 
35th. What course did the dentists take in Boston ? 
Ans. They wrote articles in journals ; I don't know of any- 
thing else ; they talked against it. 

36th. What did Dr. Morton do, if anything, and how far, in 
its defence ? 
^^* Ans. He wrote, and talked, too ; I have seen several pamph- 
lets, prepared, as T suppose, at his instance, and at his expense. 

37th. To what extent did Dr. Morton devote himself to the 
subject? What effect had it on his health and business? 

Ans. While he boarded with me, which was two or three 
Note this, jiionths, during its earliest administration, he was overwhelmed, 
pare it with day and night, conducting the administration and introduction of 
Jackson, ether ; lie became very nervous, and lost strength ; as to his busi- 
ness, I have no acquaintance. 

38th. Did you ever know of Dr. Jackson's giving any advice 
to Dr. Morton, as to the administering of ether, or its effects on 
his patients ? 

Ans. I know of nothing, except as to what I have heard of his 
saying at their first interview at Dr. Jackson's office. 

39th. Did Dr. Jackson, during the early contest in Boston and 
elsewhere, to which you have referred, make any publications, or 
do any acts in defence of the ether ? 

Ans. I knew of persons frequently inquiring of him whether it 
Kote this, possessed the virtues imputed to it ; I know of nothing either 
written or spoken by him, excepting what he said to me, as I have 
stated, at the interview when I made my first inquiries. 

40th. What is your opinion as to the value of nitrous oxide as 
Wells "^^ anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. General experience has shown it to be of little value. 

Cross-interrGgatories by A. Jackson, Jr., Esq., Counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. When and where, at what time, and under what circum- 
stances, did you first hear of the first dental operations performed 
under the influence of inhaled sulphorine ether. 

Ans. I think I have already stated that I heard of it at my 
dinner table, from my wife ; it was sometime in September, very 
soon after the first operation, I should judge. 

2d. What can you now recall as having been stated to you by 
Dr. C. T. Jackson, in reference to the effect of sulphorine ether 
in inducing insensibility to pain ? and this in connection with sur- 
gical operations, in or about the years 1841-2 ? 

Ans. I can't state any definite time when I heard him say any- 
thing ; I had heard him allude to it some three or four years be- 



271 

fere the time of Dr. Morton's experiments ; I can recall no par- 
ticular expression ; I heard him speak of inhaling it after taking- 
chlorine gas as an antidote, and as having given him much relief; 
I heard him speak of the students at Cambridge having inhaled Davy had 
it, and its having produced a sort of intoxication ; and I have anj^^g^ aT^ 
indistinct recollection that allusions were made to the possibility nitrous ox- 
of performing some rapid operations in suigery under its influ- ide, but the 
€Bce ; nothing, however, that imprCvSsed my mind with his attach- J^^ ^^^^I!** 
ing any great importance to it. for it. 

3d. Can you ascertain and state the time when you first heard 
from Dr. Morton anything relating to the inhalation of sulphurine 
ether ? 

Ans. I cannot state the time precisely ; it was in relation to 
some patients with unfavorable symptoms after taking ether, I 
think a Miss Shelton. At that time I asked his permission to see 
some operations, which he granted. I think I was the first phy- 
sician who seen any operations in his office. Nothing was said 
in relation to the discovery. This was Avithin the first fortnight 
after his using it. Several other times he called on me for the 
same purpose, but no special conversation in reference to it took 
place until the evening before the operation at the hospital. 

4th. In how many cases have you ever seen Dr. Morton attend 
to the administration, by inhalation, of sulphurine ether ? 

Ans. Twenty or thiity, I should say. 

5th. Whether, or not, Dr. Morton, or his assistants, in these 
cases, administered the ether? 

Ans. With two exceptions, by Dr. Morton, I think. In those 
two cases, by his students. 

6th. Your first acquaintance with the inhalation of sujphurine 
ether being in reference to medical prescriptions for patients v^ith 
unfavorable symptoms, in how many cases were you called, dur- 
ing the first few weeks of Dr. Morton's use of sulphurine ether ? 
Describe the condition of these patients ? 

Ans. I was called to six or eight patients, one was in a state 
of very high excitement, almost a maniac ; she was brought to my See an- 
house, and was unable to go home for several hours. She was in fwerto29th 
a very highly excited state for several days afterwards, somewhat tory7p.274. 
hysterical. She afterwards suffered in a singular way from a second 
operation. Some of them vomited profusely. One or two were 
lethargic, and roused with great difficulty. These were the prin- 
cipal phenomena which I recollect. 

7th. Whether or not there was much, if any public conversa- 
tion, or rumor or expression of indignation, or otherwise, early 
in the administration of ether by Dr. Morton, as to his mode of 
administration ? 

Ans. There was much indignation and disapprobation from the ^herewas 
profession, especially the dentists, and also, in several instances, Jow^?^" 
by patients. In one or two instances, prosecutions were threat- 



272 

ened ; not particularly on account of the mode of administration 
but for administering it at ail. In the case of Miss Shelton^ 
especially, much dissatisfaction was expressed and still exists. 

8th. Whether, in these cases, there was in patients any asphyxia, 
or tendency to it ? 

Ans. In none of the cases to which I was called. 

9th. Whether, or not, any reports of these cases spoken of in 
answer to 7th cross-interrogatory, reached Dr. Jackson's ears? 
Whether he spoke with you of Morton's administering ether ? 

Ans. I don't know whether these cases were known to him. I 
have often heard Dr. Jackson speak disparagingly of Dr. Morton's 
experiments; especially as to his indiscretion and want of dis- 
crimination. 

10th. Can you state, or ascertain the date when Dr. Morton 
was received in your house as a boarder ? 

Ans. I have made some examination of my books, but cannot 
state precisely. It was the last of October, probably, or early in 
November. 

11th. Will you please state when, and under what circum- 
stances, you first had any knowledge of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I had heard Dr. Jackson speak of him as a student; but 
my first personal knowledge of him, was in August or September, 
1846^ when he called to request permission from me to place my 
name, as a reference, on his card. At that time, he gave me a 
summary of his alleged improvements in dentistry. When I spoke 
before of my first interview^ with Dr. Morton, I had forgotten 
this circumstance. 

12th. Will you please state what Dr. Morton said then, of his 
improvements in dentistry ? 

Ans. 1 recollect his speaking of some process by which he pre- 
vented the warping and shrinking of his blocks in baking them, 
and of his processes for moulding his gold plate ; he mentioned 
g^^— ^ other improvements which he expected to make, some of which I 
thought chimerical ; especially his anticipation of being able to 
perform operations without pain. 

13th. Did he then say anything about using chlorine ether to 
^1^-^^^ destroy pain in dentistry ? 

Ans. Neither ether nor any other agent was mentioned. 

14th. Will you please state what he said about destroying pain ? 

Ans. As near as I can recollect, he said, " and I will have some 

Note tbis. ^^J y^^? ^7 which I will perform my operations without pain." 

I smiled, and told him if he could effect that, he would do more 

than human wisdom had yet done, or than I expected it would 

ever do. 

15th. Did he state that he was engaged in any process by which 
he expected, or hoped to attain, to the performance of operations 
without pain ? 

Ans. I do not think he did. 



273 

16th. Was what he said about performing operations without 
pain, an utterance of a hope or wish of his ? 

(Objected to.) R. H, D., Jr. 

Ans. A hope. 

17th. Did he then say anything of his being engaged in perfect- 
ing some process by Avhich he expected to be able to fill teeth 
with a white preparation, King's cement, or something of that 
kind, instead of using gold ? 

Ans. I do not recollect it. 

18th. Did you ever know, or learn from Dr. Morton, at what 
time he got a certificate from Dr. Jackson of his studentship 
under Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. I recollect that after the discovery of etherization, a cer- 
tificate was obtained from Dr. Jackson ; and I think to enable him 
to gain the college of dental surgeons. I don't think I know any 
of the circumstances attending it. 

19th. Suppose it were stated to you as a fact, that the meeting 
of the Warren club, at which you had some convej-sation with 
Dr. Jackson and Dr. Warren, in reference to recent painless sur- 
gical operations in October, 1846, was held on Tuesday, October 
27th ; whether or not you should say that that was the time when, 
as stated in your answer to 20th interrogatory, you think the in- 
terview was two days previously to the amputation at the hos- 
pital? 

Ans. T think I stated that it was two days before, if the meet- 
ing of the Warren club w^as on Thursday evening, as it usually is. 
It was at the meeting immediately preceding the amputation. 

20th. Whether or not the operation of November 7, was to 
have been performed in October, and was postponed from Satur- 
day, October 31, to Noventber 7. 

Ans. I think it was quite possible that the operation was post- 
poned, but having no hospital records, I cannot tell. 

21st. Would you be kind enough to state all the conversation 
that you heard between Dr. Jackson and Dr. Warren at the in- 
terview, when the club met at Dr. Warren's house, on the 27th 
of October, 1846? 

Ans. I have already stated every thing which occurred. 

22d. Did you hear Dr. Jackson say to Dr. Warren that he sent ^^^^ 
Dr. Morton to him? """^ 

Ans. I did not. 

23d. Did you hear Dr. Jackson say to Dr. Warren that he un- 
derstood that the first operation about w^hich there had been 
conversation, was not perfectly successful ; that he understood that 
the patient felt a scraping, or something to that effect? 

Ans. I dont recollect it — I ought to say that I paid very little 
attention to the conversation. 

24th. Did you know or hear Dr. Jackson state in this conversa- 
tion that there ought to be some more brilliant operation ? 
18 



274 

Ans. I do not recollect it. 

25th. Will you please to state what remarks Dr. Warren made 
in reference to the position of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I think he said that as Dr. Morton stood in a somewhat 
improfessional position, he should .prefer to have Dr. Jackson ad- 
minister it. 

26th. Whether or not you can recall the words of Dr. Warren 
which he used in reference to the position of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. Not distinctly enough to take my oath of them. 

27th. Whether or not Dr. Warren said he did not like to Lave 
such a quackish fellow as Dr. Morton about the hospital, or words 
of that character? 

Ans. He might have used an expression some what like this, 
he is some what quackish in his way ; but I think he did not make 
any reference to the hospital. 

28th. Whether or not you knew, at this evening of the meeting 
of the Warren club, of an engagement of Dr. Jackson at the 
mining regions of Maryland, and of his absence? If, aye how 
long absent from Bosten ? 

Ans. He stated to Dr. Warren in my presence, that he w^as to 
go to Maryland, and he was absent until near the 20th of Novem- 
ber, at least until the loth. 

29th. In reference to the cases of bad effects of the early ad- 
ministration of ether by Dr. Morton, can you specify the causes of 
these, such as impure ether, want of atmospheric air, stiffness of 
the valves or the like? 

Ans. I saw nothing different from what I have seen at different 
times ever since, at that time, in most instances, and perhaps the 
instrument with valves was not used. They were cases which, 
at the present day, would give no special alarm. 

30th. Whether or not, during the early administration of the 
ether by Dr. Morton, in answer to auy objection of the danger 
of using ether, Dr. Jackson stated, that any danger arose from 
the mode of administering it ? 

Ans. I did not hear of it during the time referred to, I heard 
of it three or four months afterw^ards. 

31 st. Whether you recollect an interview at your house, when 
Dr. H. J. Bigelow, Mr. R. H. Eddy, and Dr. Morton were pre- 
sent? can you state the date of this? 
The dis- -^"s. I recollect it. It was Sunday evening, November 15, 
«overy had 1846. 

nowassum- 32(1. Whether Dr. Bigelow went from your house for Dr. 
ed Its full T„ „]-„„„ 9 ^ ^ 

importance ''^^^^°"- 

Ans. He did not at that time. He came from Dr. Jackson's to 

my house as he stated. 

33d. How happened it that Dr. Jackson was then present? 

Ans. Dr. Bigelow had made several efforts during the day to 
see him unsuccessfully. What induced him to come to my room. 



^l^^ 



^^ 



ws- 



275 

I know not, unless with the expectation of finding Dr. Bigelow 
there. It was known that I had taken some interest in this pub- 
hcation, and had been very solicitous that nothing should be in- 
serted which involved the question of discovery and I had referred 
Dr. Bigelow to Mr. Eddy, sr., knowing him to have been often- 
times Dr. Jacksons' adviser. 

34th. Whether Dr. Eigelow stated that he left word for Dr. 
Jackson to come to your house? 

Ans. I do not recollect it, I supposed the meeting at my room 
to have heen entirely accidental. It certainly was, so far as Dr. 
Bigelow, Dr. Morton and I were concerned. I do not think that 
any individual knew that any other of the party was to be present. 

35th. Whether Dr. Bigelow had with him, at your house the 
proof sheets of the article published November 18, in the Boston 
Medical and Surgical Journal ? 

Ans. He had the manuscript, not the proofs ? 

36th. Had not proof sheets then been stricken off? 

Ans. It was not then in type. The reason why Dr. Bigelow 
was so anxious to see Dr. Jackson on Sunday, was the necessity of 
giving it to the printer ^hat night. 

37 th. Did Dr. Jackson, after he came in, sit or stand during 
the time of his presence at your house at this interwiew? 

Ans. He stood most of the time ; after an examination of the 
manuscript he sat down, and we had some general conversation. 

38th. Whether the article was read in Dr. Jackson's presence? 

Ans. It lay on the table and he read the concluding portion of it. 

39th. Whether or not. Dr. Jackson stated at this interview that 
the article was unjust and unfair to him, in not clearly stating that 
the discovery originated with him ? 

Ans. I do not recollect it, I recollect it was stated to him that 
every allusion to the discovery had been avoided as far as possible. 
There was an allusion which seemed necessary, in which both 
names were mentioned, the names of both Jackson and Morton. 
It was simply the allusion to the patent. 

40th. Whether or not, you stated that you were glad to see 
Dr. Jackson and Dr. Morton face to face, and that you had no 
doubt but that if he stated fully his claims to the discovery, Dr. 
Morton would fully admit what was his claim, or something to 
this effect? 

Ans. I did say that I was glad to see Ihem face to face, and 
that I had no doubt but that he would find that Dr. Morton 
would admit in general all he claimed, or something to that 
effect. 

41st. Whether or not Dr. Jackson then stated, 1st. That he 
discovered that the inhalation of pure sulphurine ether would pro- 
duce insensibility to pain. 2d. That he communicated this dis- 
covery on this fact to Dr. Morton, and requested him to employ 
it in extracting teeth, and that Dr. Morton assented to these pro- 



276 

positions. 3d. That he sent Dr. Morton to the Massachusetts 
General Hospital to request Dr. Warren to use ether in a surgical 
case, and that this Dr. Morton dissented from. 

Ans. I can't recollect the distinct propositions ; I recollect 
that several claims were made which Morton did admit. In rela- 
tion to sending Dr. Morton to the hospital. Dr. Morton dissented. 
Dr. Jackson said he could prove it ; I was anxious that the dis- 
cussion should not be renewed, and trod upon Morton's toes, and 
he replied, " Well, if you can prove it, of course it must be so." 
Those were the precise words, as far as my recollection goes. 

42d. Whether Dr. Bigelow said to Dr. Jackson, "You claim 
Morton to have been merely a tool, then," or words of this import ? 

Ans. I don't recollect them. 

43d. Whether Dr. Jackson said to Dr. Bigelow " at all events 
an intelligent instrument," or words of this kind ? 

Ans. I don't remember it. 

44th. Whether Mr. Eddy had any part or share in the writing 
or publication of the paper of Dr. Bigelow ? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. We then had discussed the 
closing part of the article before Dr. Jackson's arrival, and had 
excluded one sentence by the advice of Mr. Eddy. 

45th. Whether, during this interview, Dr. Bigelow or Mr. 
Eddy urged the publication of this paper against Dr. Jackson's 
objections ? 

Ans. I did not understand that after examining the paper, he 
made any objections; upon first entering the room, before looking 
at it, he protested against it strongly. The feeling I had was 
that he withdrew all objections after examining it, finding that 
there "was nothing in there which touched upon the question of 
discovery. 

46th. What could Dr. Jackson have been excited about when 
he entered the room ? 

Ans. I supposed he conjectured that some papers were about to 
be published advocating the claims of Dr. Morton as a discoverer? 

47th. Had he heard anything of this paper before he came to 
your house ? Did he know of this paper before he come ? Did 
he know for what word had been left for him to come ? 

Ans. I presume he must have known of the papers before he 
came, as Dr. BigeloAV had made several efforts to see him re- 
specting it. I was informed that he had conversed with Mrs. 
Jackson in the course of the day respecting it ; I can't say whe- 
ther he knew^ for what word had been left for him to come to my 
house. I did not know that he was asked to come. I was Hot 
anticipating seeing any one. 

48th. Has not Dr. Jackson uniformly, since your first interview 
with him, of which you speak in answer to 6th interrogatory, which 
occurred about three days after the first dental operation, when- 
ever the question of who was the discoverer of etherization has 



277 

been mooted, stated that the discovery was: exclusively his own 
or originated with him ? 

Ans. I can only say that he has not uniformly said he was the 
sole discoverer. He has never said anything that would contradict 
such an assertion. I never knew the time, first or last, when he cc-^^y 
did not declare that he told Dr. Morton to use ether of a par- don't you 
ticular quality and that it would be safe. There have been a try ether?'' 
good many occasions when the doctor has spoken about it, when ^'A^w^^er. 
nothing was said about the discovery. For the first two months 
or more, the difficulties between Drs. Jackson and Morton related 
more especially to other points. Since that time, he has uniformly 
asserted that he was the original discoverer. 

49th. What is meant by the word uniformly, in the last answer ? 
Whether or not that Dr. Jackson has always said, whenever it 
has been stated that Dr. Wells or Dr. Morton, or any body else, 
was the discoverer of etherization, that he was, and so consi- 
dered himself the discoverer ? 

Ans. We were meeting almost every day, when there were 
conversations about ether, in which nothing was said about dis- 
covery. I don't recollect of conversing with him about any 
other person than Dr. Morton in relation to this matter. On this 
point, I can say no more than I have answered in my preceding 
answer. 

oOth. Whether or not you remember that whilst Dr. Jackson 
was absent in Maryland, Dr. H. J. Bigelow read a paper con- 
cerning etheiization on or about November 3d, before the Am.eri- 
can Academy ? 

Ans. I do. 

51st. Whether or not you recollect that in reading that paper, 
or in connexion with it, Dr. Bigelow ascribed the first suggestion 
of the use of sulphurine ether to Dr. Jackson, and its use under 
his advice or direction to Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I do not recollect. 

52d. When did Mr. R. H. Eddy call upon you for the purpose 
of consulting the by-lav/s of the Massachusetts Medical Society? 

Ans. It was the evening before Dr. Jackson signed the appli- 
cation, or something about the patent. That was the 28th of 
October, or the latter part of October. 

53d. Can you state what opinion you then gave to Mr. R. H. Seetesti- 
Eddy ? ^ ^o^y ^^ ^* 

Ans, The substance of it was that Mr. Eddy said that Dr. ^iso ^of 
Jackson objected to taking out a patent on the ground that the Chandler, 
laws of the Massachusetts Medical Society forbade the use of ^^* •^^^^" 
secret remedies. I replied that a patented article was not a secret char'^ed ^^* 
one, that Dr. Jackson had given up his profession for science, and $50o1br ad- 
must live by the results of his scientiiic pursuits ; that if the ^^<^^? *n<i 
society should see fit to expel him under such circumstances, Iio^percen^ 
should say let them expel. I promised to see Dr. Jackson in the on sales. 



278 

morning ana txprcss tius opinion tc !ihi:. I v*i:i ca!!, zrA be told 
me he had already signed the papers. Mr. Eddy represented that 
Dr. Jpxkson said that if I thought there was no objection, he 
would consent. 

54th. Whether or not you sent word to Dr. Jackson by Mr. 
Eddy to the effect as stated in the last answer of your opinion 
about the propriety of taking out a patent ? 

Ans. I did not send that word, because I had promised to call. 
I understood from Dr. Jackson that Mr. Eddy had communi- 
cated my opinion to him. 

55th. Did you know from the parties in interest what was the 
amount of interest of Mr. R. H. Eddy in the patent ? What 
was this ? 

Ans. 1 knew from Mr. Eddy and Dr. Morton. It was stated 
that Mr. Eddy had arranged that the preparation of the papers 
was to be entrusted to him. The money was to pass through his 
hands, and, after deducting his charges, he was to render a period- 
ical account and pay over the balance. I never knew of any 
other copartnership interest. Mr. Eddy stated that this course 
was adopted simply for security for his services. This was in 
relation to American patents. In relation to foreign patents, it 
Y/as also understood that, if they were successful in obtaining one, 
there was to be a division of the profits. 

56th. Before September 30, 1846, was anything known of the 
anesthetic effects of the inhalation of sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I am not aware that anything relating to its anaesthetic 
effects by inhalation had been noticed. It had been used for that 
purpose by being taken into the stomach. 

57th. Did any medical authorities, anterior to September 30, 
1846, teach that the inhalation of the vapor of sulphuric ether 
would be attended wdth safety ? 

Ans. I never have examined to ascertain that point ; I am not 
aware of any. 

58th. So far as your knowledge extends, did any one know 
that the vapor of sulphuric ether could be inhaled with safety to 
such an extent as to prevent pain, before Dr. C. T. Jackson 
pointed out the two conditions ? First, partly from alcohol and 
acids ; second, the due admixture of atmospheric air while in- 
haling ether — supposing him to have so said. 

Ans. I don't know. 

59th. Whether or not you kne^v of advertisements of Dr. Mor- 
ton's in the Boston newspapers ? Will you please state the 
character, if you know of or saw them. 

Ans. There were advertisements, and I frequently wTote them 
myself, at his request. They announced that he w^as employing 
a compound recently invented, by which he could perform dental 
operations without pain. 

60th. Will you please state how it happened that you wrote 
them ? Why Dr. Morton did not write them ? 



279 

Ans. Not beinof accustomed to writino: himself, from lack of 
early advantages, and being a resident m my family, he requested 
me to put in form his advertisements. This I did, in such lan- 
guage as he dictated, as his amanuensis, and oftentimes not as • 
expressing my own opinion. Some of them appear to have been 
verbally altered previously to publication. Some of tliese ar- 
ticles have been ascribed to me, as expressive of my own senti- 
ments. I wrote as an amanuensis. 

61st. Will you please look at page 45 of Report No. 114 to 
80th Congress, 2d session, February 23, 1849 — a report of Dr. 
Edwards. Is the following statement of Dr. Keep's, according to 
your recollection of the facts, as there stated : '^ I became as- 
sociated in the business and practice of dentistry with Dr. Mor- 
ton on the 28th of November, in the year 1846. On the next 
day we were about to prepare an advertisement for publication, 
when Dr. Augustus A. Gould called at our rooms. Being 
pressed with business, I requested him to write the advertisement, 
with which request he complied. After he had written it, which 
he did at his own house, he brought it to me, and we read it to- 
gether. In it the discovery of etherization, without any sugges- 
tion having been made by me to that effect, was ascribed, in 
explicit terms, to Dr. Charles T. Jackson. Dr. Gould, pointing 
with his finger to the words in which this ascription was ex- 
pressed, said to me, ' that will please Jackson.' I then showed 
the advertisement to Dr. Morton, and we read it together. He 
then exclaimed, with emphasis, that is good ; I like that ; I'll 
lake it to the printer." 

Ans. It does not convey my idea precisely ; it tells the truth, 
but not the whole truth. I had observed that Dr. Jackson's 
name had been, for the most part, omitted in the advertisements 
of Dr. Morton, and was desirous that his name should not thus 
be lost sight of. I therefore determined to introduce Dr. Jack- 
son's name in the proposed copartnership notice, and did so, by 
alluding to the aneesthetic agent which had been introduced by 
Drs. Jackson and Morton, ascribing it to neither of them sepa- 
rately, but to both of them unitedly. My desire was that Dr. «:^^ 
Jackson should be recognized as connected with the discovery, 
without indicating the amount of his claim, whether more or 
less. It was in reference to this introduction of his name that 
I said, " that will please Jackson." 

62d. Whether at that time you wrote one or several adver- 
tisements ; and if not at that time, whether or not before or 
after that time, in relation to the copartnership of Dr. Morton 
and Dr. Keep ? 

Ans. I wrote a rough draught of an advertisement at that time, 
which I afterwards copied with some verbal alterations ; what 
those were I cannot now state. 



280 

63d. Whether or not, in your early acquaintance with Dr. 
Morton, his knowledge, or want of knowledge of dentistry, and 
matters therewith connected — his knowledge of ether, and their 
various kinds and properties, carne under your observation ? Will 
you please state as to his knowledge or want thereof ? 

Ans. I had no acquaintance at that time either with his knowl- 
edge or want of know^ledge of dentistry or chemistry, or materia 
medica. 

64th. Whether you stated that you knew, after a few minutes 
conversation wdth Dr. Morton, that etherization never originated 
with him ; that, when he first came to you, he knew nothing of 
the effects of ether or its constitution, or words of such import ? 

Ans. My first impression was, before seeing Dr. Morton, that 
Dr. Jackson must have put him on the track, and I so expressed 
it after my conversation with him respecting ether. I might have 
made the remark that he w^as comparatively ignorant of its pro- 
perties. I did not then express the opinion that he could not 
have been the discoverer. 

65th. At what time, if ever, you learned from Dr. Morton of 
any use of ether by inhalation, or to prevent pain in surgical ope- 
rations, by him, anterior to the 30th of September, 1846 ? 

Ans. Never. 

66th. For how long a time did he remain in your house? 

Ans. Between two and three months. 

67th. In any conversation at your house, did he never speak of 
any use, by him, of ether on a dog, or on animals, or on himself, 
by way of experiment, in order to test the effects of the inhalation 
of ether ? 

Ans. I have heard him mention such experiments, but I cannot 
recollect their date. I think it was not during the time he was 
w^ith me, or if so, it must have been during the latter part of that 
time. 

68th. Can you state when he first spoke of such use of ether t 

Ans. I cannot. 

69th. Can you state when he said he so used ether ? Whether 
he said he used it before th^ 30th of September, 1846 ? 

Ans. I cannot state when he said it, but I can state that the 
|^^> experiments he alluded to were previous to that time ; I think 
during the previous summer. 

70th. Can you state when he first spoke to you of such experi- 
ments? Whether he described the experiments which he said he 
tried ? Whether he said he used ether by inhalation ? Whether 
he said for what purpose he tried such experiments? 

Ans. I can't say when he spoke of it. I have an imperfect re- 
collection only of his speaking of his experimenting upon a dog 
at his place somewhere in the country. I do not recollect that 
he stated any object he had in view. He stated that he used ether 
by inhalation in these experiments. 



281 

71st. What is the etfect of ether on quadrupefls ? Are not their 
hinder extremities paralyzed for some ten of fifteen minutes after 
they recover from the etherized state, so that they drag them 
about after them ? 

Ans. I never witnessed any experiments upon animals. 

72d. Whether or not you remember, that at a meeting of the 
American Academy, after the meeting of November 3d, at which 
meeting, held at Tremont Row, Dr. Jackson, having then returned 
from Maryland, was present, that Dr. H. J. Bigelow had some 
conversation with Dr. Jackson touching the origin of etherization, 
in which you participated ? 

Ans. I cannot recall any such conversation. 

73d. Whether or not Dr. Bigelow, in this interview, stated to 
Dr. Jackson that he orally stated, when he read his paper of No- 
vember 3d, that the matter originated with Dr. Jackson, and that 
Dr. Morton obtained his knowledge from him? 

Ans. I don't recollect it. 

74th. Whether or not you knew of Dr. Jackson's engagements 
in the fall of 1846 ? Whether or not he was very busy in finish- 
ing awid working over assays of ores ? 

Ans. I knew of his going to Maryland, and of his being very 
much interested in the new article of gun cotton, but did not know 
of his engagement in assaying ores. 

75th. Do you remember any remarks of Dr. H. J. Bigelow's, 
made to you after witnessing the first or some early experiment 
at the Hospital, to this effect : '^ I will make the first publication, 
for it is a thing on whieh one may ride round the world?" or 
some remark to that effect? 

Ans. No, sir. The question probably alludes to a remark of 
Dr. O. W. Holmes in Dr. Bigelow's presence, a hint of which Dr. 
Bigelow availed himself. That was long previously, however, to 
the operations at the hospital. 

76th. Whether or not, at some time in the winter of 1846 or 
1847, a statement was drawn up by you, in which was set forth 
the claims of Dr. Morton? 

Ans. There was such a statement. It also set forth the claims 
of Dr. Jackson, though less perfectly, as a person selected by Dr. 
Jackson had undertaken that part of the statement. 

77th. Whether or not Dr. Morton had then stated to you that 
in his experiments, or attempts to prevent sensibility to pain, he 
had tried or had recourse to effects on the imagination, or mes- 
merism ? 

Ans. He never made any such statement to me. • _^>«s 

78th. At the time you drew up this statement, had Dr. Morton *^=^^^ 
made any statement to you of any use by him of pure sulphuric 
ether, or experiments by him with sulphuric ether, anterior to 
September 30, 1846, to induce insensibility to pain in surgical 
operations ? 



282 

Ans. He proposed that I should make an allusion to certain 
experiments, wnicn naa tnen been pubhsnea, i laiiiK, in some of 
his controversial papers. 

79th. Was that the first time you had heard of such experi- 
ments, which he had then had published ? 

Ans. I had read his publications. 

80th. Before you read his publication in which these experi- 
ments were set forth, had you heard from him an account of 
them? 

Ans. I must refer to my previous answer. I have stated what 
I heard from him. 

81st. Whether or not you are familiar with the facts connected 
with the early history of etherization ? 

Ans. I think as much so as any other person. 

82d. Whether or not, in your own mind, you have confidence in 
the alleged experiments of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I should never deny what I had no means of disputing. I 
had omitted them in this statement, feeling that they had no im- 
portant bearing on this question of discovery, feeling that they 
would complicate the matter. 

83d. Did Dr. Morton ever state to you that he ever derived any 
information from Dr. Jackson in relation to sulphuric ether ? If 
yea, when did he first state this ? 

Ans. I have heard him say that Dr. Jackson proposed the use 
of it, and directed the quality of the article to be used. This 
must have been very soon after his first use of it by inhalation. 

84th. Were you present at the operation at the Bronfield 
House on the 21st of November? If yea, do you remember 
whether Dr. Morton or Dr. Warren administered the ether? 

Ans. I was present; Dr. Morton administered the ether, not 
Dr. Warren ; such has always been my recollection of it ; certainly, 
I am sure ke was there. 

85th. Whether or not, what you have stated in answer to 6th 
interrogatory, as spoken by Dr. Jackson, about not bringing in 
his name with it, w^as spoken in connection with Dr. Morton's 
wish to get a certificate to publish in the papers, or in connection 
with what Dr. Jackson said of Dr. Morton's recklessness? 
^,^_^ Ans. I do not know that it was in connection with either. ^ It 
^^"^^^^ seemed simply to be in connection with the use of ether. 

86th. Has not Dr. Jackson refrained from introducing the dis- 
cussion of his claim to this discovery of the anaesthetic effects of 
ether at the Warren Club, and at the Boston Society of Natural 
History? And are you not aware that this forbearance was with 
an idea of avoiding, on his part, personal matters in scientific dis- 
coveries in the societies? 
^,^2=3, Ans. I did not suppose that he had avoided it from any such 
iscj^' motive ; I supposed that his absence was the main reason why he 
did not introduce the subject, because he afterwards strongly in- 



283 

sisted that his claims should be considered by the academy, con- 
trary to the general wish of the members. 

87th. Whether or not, in numerous cofiversations in October 
and November, 1846, you repeatedly heard statements by Dr. 
Jackson, that he proposed the use of sulphuric ether to Dr. Mor- 
ton before Morton's first dental operation under the influence of 
it, and for the express purpose of using the ether to induce insen- 
sibility ? 

Ans. I did. 

88th. Whether or not, your statements have been that Dr. 
Jackson proposed the use of sulphuric ether by inhalation by Dr. 
Morton ; that he specified the use of rectified ether ; that he di- 
rected the manner of administering it ; and that he assured Morton 
of his safety ? 

Ans. Yes. I mean its use at the first operation. 

89th. Whether or not, you remember that at a meeting of the 
Boston Society of Medical Improvements, soon after the discovery 
was announced to the world, that Dr. Jackson moved for a com- 
mittee to collect and record all the cases in which ether was 
used, with all the facts therewith connected. 

Ans. I do not. 

90th. Whether or not, you have expressed the opinion that 
Dr. Jackson is in the same category in relation to the discovery 
of etherization, as Leverrier is in relation to the discovery of the 
new planet Neptune? 

Ans. By no means. I conceive that an induction from mathe- 
matical laws is entirely different in its value from an induction 
from physiological phenomena. 

91st. Can any person be the author of a discovery in the in- 
ductive sciences without either originating any new idea, or de- 
vising the means of establishing the truth of a conjecture, whether 
more or less probable, previously brought to view by another 
person ? 

Ans. The question involves so many combinations that I can- 
not answer it. It would require me to look over the whole 
catalogue of inventions. The question expresses the general pro- 
cess in the making of discoveries on inventions. 

92d. Whether or not, you can specify any new idea connected 
with the discovery of etherization first originated by Dr. Morton, 
or any new experiment devised by him by which that discovery 
was established ? 

Ans. I cannot; my knowledge on that point extends simply to 
his processes in developing the effects of etherization. Every 
experiment performed by Morton directly tended to develope the 
discovery ; and if the discovery is meant to include the advances 
in the knowledge of the effects of ether vapor, then Morton's first 
use of it for a prolonged period, in an operation by Dr. Dix, and 
his alleged introduction of it at the hospital in a capital operation. 



284 

may be considered a new experiment. The first administration 
of it in obstetrics, by Dr. N. C. Keep, must be considered as an- 
other, and a similar step in the discovery. 

Direct resumed by Mr. Dana. 

1st. In the conversation at your house of the loth of Novem- 
^^.^^ her, did Dr. Jackson claim to have discovered, independently of 
^^^ Dr. Morton's experiments, the power which ether was then 
proved to possess? 

Ans. No. The conversation simply alluded to his connection 
with Dr. Morton to the information he gave him. 

2d. In the cases at Dr. Morton's office, which produced effects, 
to v/hich you have referred, and where you were called in, were 
these effects, and how far attributable to any ignorance or reck- 
lessness of Dr. Morton, allowing] for the state of the art at the 
time? 

Ans. I should say no. They were just such effects as are com- 
monly seen now ; I sometimes suspected them to arise from the 
ether being of an imperfect quality, not being properly rectified. 

3d. Did Dr. Jackson, in the conversation at your house, claim 
to have told Dr. Morton, at the interview of September SOth, 
^^^ that he had then discovered the power of ether, which was known 
at the time of this conversation. 

Ans. He did not. 

4th. When Dr. Morton said to you, "and I will have some 
way yet, by which I can perform my operations without pain," 
had you any suspicion to what he referred? 

Ans. I had not. 

0th. Please refer to your answer to the 92d cross interrogatory, 
and connect it w^ith the first two experiments at the hospital, and 
Dr. Morton's dental experiments before them. 

Ans. I conceive that the first and only idea, so far as the dis- 
covery is concerned, was the inhalation of ether vapor of a pure 
quality. The first operation involving pain was performed by 
Dr. Morton. 

6th. Do you consider the entertaining idea that ether could be 
inhaled independently of any experiment, to see what power and 
effect it had, as being the discovery of the ansesthetic power of 
ether? 

Ans. I do not. In no case can the physiological effects of an 
agent or individual persons be pronounced a priori. 
Dr. Jack- 7th. Considering the nature of the subject-matter, how far is 
son's sug- an idea that ether vapor might produce some effect in the w^ay of 
tinguished" ^litigating, or relieving, or destroying pain, without any experi- 
fi-om this nient producing pain ; a discovery of what is now known ? 
discoTery. Ans. I should say none whatever ; it is a plausible idea, and 
would deserve a trial. 



285 

8th. Have or not, similar ideas been commonly entertained as , The same 
to different gasses, vapors, and liquors, and been more or less ex- Jnonlv^^en- 
perimented on ? tertained 

Ans. They have. and experi- 

9th. Suppose a person to have inhaled ether for some other ^^rj^hi^ ^?s 
purpose, privately, and without any cut or wound, or other act^hat Dr. 
producing pain, and found himself becoming unconscious, with Jackson 
numbness before and after unconsciousness, could he, or not, make ^^™^done 
a fair induction that he would be insensible to a surgical opera- ^^ut with- 
tion ? out any 

Ans. In my view he could not, because similar conditions have Fg^o^-^ ^ 

"been induced by other remedies, which have not had the power of th^ opinion 

destroying pain in surgical operations. of this sci- 

10th. Did you ever know Dr. C. T. Jackson to perform any ^ptiflc and 

,, , . -^ . . a ^ '' distmgmsh- 

ansesthetic experiment : ^^ witness, 

Ans. I have never seen him ; I have heard of his administering if the facts 
it at the Insane Hospital during the summer of '47, and also to ^'^re even 
Indians and others about Lake Superior, during his survey there ^^ ^J^ould 
in 1847-8 ; I think I must except the case alluded to in my pre- 'have 
vious answer as having been performed on himself, which I only amounted 
know from his own statement. _ tT^7& 

11th. Please read your ansvv^er to the ood cross-mterrogatory. nothing 
Did Dr, Morton admit that he received his first idea of using ether ever came 
from Dr. Jackson, or that Dr. Jackson did, in fact, make a sug- ^|/*" ^®® 
gestion? ^ ^ page,inter- 

Ans. He admitted that Dr. Jackson, on this particular occasion, rogatory 2, 
proposed to him that he should use sulphuric ether ; nothing was «c^^ 
said about this being an original idea. 

12th. Did Dr. Morton ever admit that Dr. Jackson said to him 
that he could use it with success ? 

Ans. I think he did ; he admitted that he told him that by ad- 
ministering it he could manage his patient as he pleased ; that was 
the only case alluded to in their interview, as I understood it ; I 
mean the dental patient, for whom he was in search of some- 
thing. 

loth. Did he ever admit that Dr. Jackson told him, intimated 
to him, the effects now known to be produced ? 

Ans. He never did. «:^^ 

14th. From the nature of the subject-matter, do you, or not, 
consider the discovery to have been made before an experiment 
producing, constitutes the discovery? 

Ans. I do not, «S^ 

Cross resu7ned hy Mr. Jackson. 

1st. Did not Dr. Jackson, at the interview at your house spo- 
ken of in answer to the third direct resumed, claim that he had, 



286 

anterior to September, 1846, discovered that pure sulphuric ether 
inhaled would produce insensibility ? 

Ans. I can't recollect the portions he did take, with one excep- 
tion, as previously stated ; I believe he has always made that 
claim since it become a matter of controversy. 

2d. Suppose the case, as stated in 9th direct resumed, with this 
condition added, " some of severe pain, which was suffered before 
inhalation of ether," then, in your opinion, could not the induc- 
tion be made that insensibility v^ould be the result of inhalation, 
and that a painless operation might be performed ? 
i^^* Ans. My answer would be the same, and my reasons the same. 

Bired resumed hy Mr. Dana, 

1st. Did he make the claim referred to in first cross resumed in 
your first conversation with him on the subject of Dr. Morton's 
experiments ? 

Ans. I have no recollection that he did. 

AUGUSTUS A. GOULD. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, \ 
Suffolk county. \ 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam of Augustus A. Gould, taken before us upon the 
petition of Dr. William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law, 
Boston, December 16, 1852. 



I, Caleb Eddy, of Boston, of lawful age, being first duly sworn, 
depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by R. H. Dana, jr., 
esq., counsel for Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton : 

1st. How long have you resided in Boston ? What has been 
your occupation ? What public offices have you held ? 

Ans. I have resided in Boston since 1799. I commenced in the 
ship chandlery business in 1807. I was in that business seventeen 
years. In 1824 I was appointed agent of the Middlesex and Mer- 
rimack river canal. I was twenty-one years in that office. I was 
in the board of aldermen of the city of Boston for two years. 



I 



287 

2d. How long and how intimately have you known Dr. Charles 
T. Jackson ? 

Ans. I can't tell exactly, but it was in 1835 that I think I first Witness 
knew him. My son employed him to analyze the waters of the tTrms^^ith 
ponds about the city of Boston. I then saw him at my son's office Dr. Jack- 
on Merchant's row, in State street. My acquaintance began there. son,andiin- 
My acquaintance with him, since that time, was very intimate up ^^jJh^^Mo?- 
to 1847. He was located in Hanover street when I first became ton till this 
acquainted with him. Our intimacy was pretty strong. He lived discovery, 
next door to me five or seven years. I was the means of procu- 
ring him two houses in which he lived. I bought for him the 
house in which he now lives, and hired for him the one in which 
he previously lived in Green street. Our families were as intimate 
as they could be. If any of Dr. Jackson's family was sick my 
wife was in there all the time. 

3d. Have you known Dr. W. T. G. Morton? How long and 
how intimately ? 

Ans. The first knowledge I had of Dr. Morton, was at the time 
he applied to take a patent on ether. He applied to my son, and 
I had a part of my son's oflfice at the time. I have not known 
him very intimately. I saw him there often, but was not partic- 
ularly acquainted with him. Sometimes I took no notice of him, -^.11 his 
being busy myself. At other times I was at leisure and heard s^ng^^^^^fu 
what was said. Jackson's 

4th. At the time the controversy began between Dr. Jackson favor. 
and Dr. Morton, on which side, if either, were your sympathies 
and prepossessions ? (Objected to.) . luiportant 

Ans. They were in favor of Dr. Jackson, for I had known him ^j^jj^^^^ 
a good while, and had not known Dr. Morton but a short time. Jackson on 

5th. Had you an interview with Dr. C. T. Jackson, in which t^e 23d Oc- 
the ether discovery was talked about, in the fall of 1846 ? If so, ^^^^^'l^^e. 
state where and all the circumstances ? 

Ans. I had an interview with him at that time. His wife and 
wife's mother were at my house spending an evening, and Dr. 
Jackson came in a little past eight o'clock. This was the 23d 
day of October, 1846. When he came in, he inquired for my 
son, Robert H. Eddy. I told him he had gone to the theatre, but 
would be back at nine o'clock. He came into the room and sat 
down, and entered into conversation. In the course of the hour, 
between eight and nine, the conversation took place which is re- 
corded in the letter to the surgeons of the Massachusetts General 
Hospital, given by me in answer to a letter from Drs. Hayward, 
Townsend and Parkman. During the evening, I requested him to 
relate to me the history of the new discovery for the prevention narratesthe 
of pain in surgical operations. He stated to me that Dr. W. T. circmn- 
G. Morton called on him during the latter part ©f the last month, st.ances of 
to obtain the loan of a gas-bag, which he said it was his intention guggestkm 
to use for the purpose of administering atmospheric air, or some- to Morton. 



288 

thing else, to a patient, to quiet her fears, in order that he might 
extract one of her teeth; that he, Dr. Jackson, informed Dr. 
Morton that his gas-bags were in the attic story of his house, and 
it would be attended vrith some trouble to procure them ; that 
Dr. Morton stated that he was desirous of operating on the imag- 
ination of a person, in some such way as was said to have been 
practised on a criminal condemned to death, viz : by suffering 
warm water to trickle upon and from some wounded or lanced 
part of the body, while the eyes of the person were bandaged. 
Dr. Jackson stated that he told Dr. Morton that such an experi- 
ment would prove a failure, and he would be ridiculed for making 
it ; that he had better let her breathe some ether, if he could in- 
duce her to inhale it, which would put her to sleep, and then he 
could pull her tooth and she could not help herself, or could not 
The direct pi'^vent him by any resistance : that Dr. jNIorton inquired of him 
cinestion as to the danger and mode of using it ; that he replied to him that 
put to Dr. lie might saturate a sponge or cloth with it, and apply it to her 
« Did^^ou i^o'^^th or nose. After Dr. Jackson had related the above, I said 
tnow at to him, ^'Dr. Jackson, did you know, at such time, that after a 
such time, person had inhaled the ether, and was asleep, his flesh could be 
that after a ^^^^ with a knife, without his experiencino^ any pam?"' He re- 
person had T 1 .'A' i>T 4- -^i, -L • 1 1 ' r 
inhaled plied, '" ho, nor Morton either: he is a reckless man for usmg it 

ether, and as he has." This is all I recollect of the conversation at that 
^_as ^^^^^Pj time. My son came in then, and they retired into another room, 
could he 6^^- Did Dr. Jackson say anything about his having requested 
cut with a or advised Dr. Morton, or any one else, to have a surgical opera- 
knife with- tion performed ? 
out his ex- . ••■ -VT • ■> Tj i. 
periencing Ans. JSo Sir, ne did not. 

any pain?" 7th. Did Dr. Jackson say anything to you respecting the taking 
To which Qut of a patent, or respecting his protesting against the taking out 
son ^an- °^ ^ patent, or being repugnant to having his name associated with 
s^ers:— Dr. Morton ? 

<'Xo, nor Ans. Not at that time, and I don't recollect that he did at any 
f^r/;-' he ^^^^' ^^^^^t was stated there amounted to pretty much all the 
is a reckless iutcrviews I had with Dr. Jackson on this subject. I have no re- 
man /or collection of any conversation afterwards with Dr. Jackson until 
a*'a^^ » "'^ -"- '^^^ ^^^^ ^^ Court street sometime in 1847. I said " Good morn- 
ing, Doctor," and he made no answer. I then said I wanted a 
little conversation with him when he had leisure. I wanted to 
see if I could not settle the difficulty between him and Dr. Morton. 
He had previously advised with me in reference to the difficulty 
between him and Professor Morse. He showed me a letter which 
he had received from Morse. His reply was, ^' If you have any 
thing to say to me, sir, you must say it to my attorney," and 
turned and left me. Two or three times after that I met him and 
bowed to him, but he did not return it. 

dth. Was this interview in the street before or after the pub- 



289 

lication of your letter to the surgeons of the Massachusetts Gen- 
eral Hospital? 

Ans. After, I think. 

9th. Have you had any interview with Dr. Jackson, at which 
the ether discovery, or his concern therein, or the patent therefor^ 
was matter of conversation, except that of October 23, 1846 ? 

Ans. No, sir, not that I have any recollection of. I know I 
have not. I never have spoken to him since, for I considered he 
meant to break off all further conversation, at the time I met 
him in Court street. 

10th. Did Dr. Jackson then, or ever, relate to you any original 
researches or experiments of his with sulphuric ether? 

Ans. No, sir ; no more than I have stated. 

11th. Did Dr. Jackson then or ever, say any thing to you 
respecting his having made an early discovery on this subject in sSM 
1842, or at any time before this time ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

12th. Did Dr. Jackson, at this interview of October 23, 1846, 
or ever, reply to you, in substance, that when he told Dr. Morton 
to use ether, he did know, or had no doubt that flesh could be 
cut without pain while under its effects ? 

Ans. No, sir. <^^ 

13th. Did he then or ever, tell you that his own mind was 
satisfied, before any actual experiment, and that it was only 
necessary to have an operation before announcing it as a fact ? 

Ans. No, sir. ^^^M 

14th, Have you read the statement of Dr. Jackson's counsel 
on pages 12 and 13, of Messrs. Lord's defence of Dr. Jackson's 
claim, published in 1848 ? Does that cause you to desire to 
make any change in, or addition to, your testimony ? 

Ans. I have read it. It does not cause me to make any change 
or addition to my testimony. I wish to state that what is there 
stated, the greater part of it, is incorrect. Dr. Jackson told me ^^^^ 
nothing about 1842. It was not mentioned. 

15th. Please state w^hat parts of that statement are and what 
are not correct? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson's statement that he called upon me for the Flat de- 
purpose of protesting against the patent, and expressing his re- ^^f^ ^f^^ 
pugnance to having his name associated with Dr. Morton, &c., is Jackson's * 
not correct. He could not have called upon me for any such statements, 
purpose. He called upon my son, and w^hen my son came in at 
nine o'clock, he left the room with him, and I kno^v not what 
passed between them. I don't know what he wanted of my son, 
nor did he state what he wanted. Dr. Jackson's statement that 
'' he related to Mr. Eddy his original researches and experiments 
with sulphuric ether, and affirmed that the discovery of its effi- -^S^ 
cacy to destroy the sensation of pain had been made in the year 
1842," if it refers to me, is incorrect. He stated no such thino-. .^SSI 
19 



290 

His statement that '- Mr, Eddy then asked Dr. Jackson if, at that 
time, he was aware that, after the ether had been inhaled, the 
flesh could be cut with a knife without the sensation of pain," is 

^^> not correct, if it refers to 1842. My inquiry of Dr. Jackson had 
reference to that present time, October 23, 1846. His statement 
that "Dr. Jackson replied that he was satisfied it could be done, 
that he had not the least doubt of it, but still that an actual 
operation should be performed before publishing the statement as 
a fact ; and for this reason he gave Dr. Morton his instructions 

^^^ to perform a dental operation upon a person under the influence 
of ether, before publishing his discovery," is incorrect. Nothing 
of the kind was said. 

Crosf>-interrGgatories by Ji. Jackson, jr., Esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. When did your first knowledge of Dr. Morton begin ? 
At^what date ? 

Ans. I knew nothing of him till he applied for a patent at the 
oflice of my son. It was in 1>j46, I think ; I can't fix the date. 

2d. In what month of 1846, did he apply for a patent? 

Ans. I can't recollect. I made no memorandum of it. 

3d. When was the interview at your house, spoken of in an- 
swer to the fifth interrogatory ? 

Ans. October 23, 1846. 

4th. How do you ascertain this date of October 23? 

Ans. When I wrote the letter in reply to the surgeons, it was 
fresh in my memory ; but, in order to be sure of it, I went into 
the Atlas office to see what the play was which was performed 
that night, and to see if I v^-as correct, and I found that I was, 

•5th. Does your recollection, or knowledge, of the date depend 
1^^ solely on the play performed at the theatre, as advertised in the 
Atlas ? 

Ans. No, sir. I had written the Jetter before I saw it, but 
that confirmed it. 

6th. Are not the same plays performed at the theatre on many 
successive days ordinarily ? 

Ans. I believe that was not. I am very sure it was not. 

7th. Did you make any memoranda at that time of the date, 
or of the interview with Dr. Jackson? 

Ans. I made one with my pencil about that time, but what has 
ever become of it, I don't know. 

8th. When did you make these memoranda ? 

Ans. It was some days after the interview with Dr. Jackson. 

9th. How happened it that you made these memoranda ? 
Please state fully. 

Ans. My son had told me some time before the time of my in- 
terview with Dr. Jackson, that there had been a discovery made, 



291 

by which a iimb could be cut off without pain. I made the 
memorandum after the interview, and before I wrote the letter to 
the surgeons. I can't tell why I made it. I often make memo- 
xanda of remarks which are made in that way. It is so long since 
I can't recollect all those minutiae. It is some six or seven years 
ago. I might have had some reason for making it then ; but it 
has escaped my memory. I recollect very well that, at the time 
I replied to that letter, I had those minutes. 

10th. Did you speak with your son, R. H. Eddy, before making 
these memoranda, and after the interview with Dr. Jackson, and 
=did he suggest this course ? 

Ans. I don't recollect certainly ; but I think my son said to 
me that he had been making some memoranda himself, and he 
thought I had better make a memorandum of all that was said. 

11th. Did your son give you any reason why you should make 
these memoranda ? 

Ans. No, sir, 

12th. Did you make these memoranda yourself, in your owa 
handwriting? 

Ans. I did. 

13th. At the time, as you state, you went to the newspaper 
office about the date, was your letter written ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. It v«ras the same day. 

14th. Was the letter dated when you went, 

Ans. I think it was, sir. 

15th. How long before you wrote the letter did you make the 
memoranda ? 

Ans. I could not tell whether it was a weekj ien days, or 
twenty days. 

16th. Had your memoranda any date, showing when you made 
them? 

Ans. I can't tell. I remember distinctly of having the memo- 
randa before me at the time I answered that letter. 

17th. How many days elapsed, after the interview with Dr. 
Jackson, before you made these memoranda ? 

Ans. That I cannot tell. 

18th. Were these memoranda made after the interview you 
have spoken of, in the street, near Mr. Putnam's office ? 

Ans. I think it was made before. 

19th. Why do you so think ? 

Ans. It is so impressed on my mind. 

20th. Did you take any other means than of going to the office 
to find the date of Dr. Jackson's call at your house? 

Ans. No, sir. 

21st. Did you ask of any members of your household, or of 
your servant, as to the date ? 

Ans. No, sir. The letter was written at the office. 



C92 

22d. What is the incident of the play which you say fixed the 
date of the interview ? How do you know that it was brought 
out only on one night ? 

Ans. I don't recollect the nanae of the play. I don't know^ 
but that it was played more than that night ; but I don't think it 
was. 

23d. Did you have these memoranda before you when you 
wrote the letter to the surgeons you have been asked about ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

24th. When did you last see these memoranda ? What did 
you do with them ? 

Ans. I don't think I have seen it since about the time when I 
wrote that letter. I can't tell what I did with them. I generally 
tear up things of that kind which I don't consider of any value. 

2oth. Can you find these memoranda now ? 

Ans. No, sir. I don't believe that I have them. 

26th. Had you kept these memoranda until you wrote the let- 
ter, as matter of importance to you ? 

Ans. I don't know that they were of very great importance 
to me. 

27th. Can you state what was the substance of these memo- 
randa ? 

Ans. Yes, sir ; pretty much w^hat was contained in that letter. 

28th. Where had you kept these memoranda before you wrote 
the letter ? 

Ans. I could not tell whether it was in my pocket-book, my 
desk, or where. I think it very likely it was in my desk at the 
office. 

29th. Did yoy make these memoranda at your house ? 

Ans. No, sir ; at the office. 

30th. Had you a desk in your son's office, or an office with 
your son ? 

Ans. I have had a desk there ever since the office was taken, 
ten or twelve years. 

31st. Can you state that the memoranda were made more than 
a week or ten days before your letter was written to the surgeons ? 

Ans. I believe I have said that I could not fix the date. 

32d. Have you ever, before to-day, stated that you made these 
memoranda ? 

Ans. I don't know that I have to any one ; still 1 might. 

33d. Whether or not the interview^ at your house, with Dr. 
Jackson, was before or after your acquaintance with Dr. Morton 
began ? 

Ans. I think Dr. Morton was at the office before that inter- 
view ; but I had not been personally acquainted with him. I am 
very sure that he had been in the office. 

34th. What was that which you said your son told you that he 
was making some memoranda of7 



293 

Ans. I don't know what he was making a memoranda of. He 
did not tell me. He said I had better make a memorandum ot 
what occurred at the house. It is mj impression that he told 
me, and that that was the reason for my making it. I think my 
son did not tell me that he was making any memoranda himself; 
but still he might have, as it was a good while ago, and I did not 
tax my mind particularly with it. I think my son has memoranda. 
He told me that he had, the other day, memoranda of the whole 
transaction. 

3Dth. Whether or not you have had much conversation with 
your son in relation to etherization, and the matter of the patent ? 

Ans. There have been conversations, but nothing more than 
common talk about it. I have read a good deal on the subject, 
and have got nearly all that has been published in the newspapers, 
and the different pamphlets, bound up. 

36th. Did you know that your son had an interest in the ether 
patent? 

Ans. I knew, at the time, that he had some interest in it, but 
what it was I don't know that I could state. He soon gave it up 
back again to Dr. Morton. 

37th. Did you know, at this interview with Dr. Jackson, at 
your house, that your son had an interest in the patent for etheri- 
zation ? 

Ans. No, sir ; I don't think he had any at that time. I don't 
know. 

38th. If he had not, were negotiations on foot for the purpose 
of his having an interest ? 

Ans. I can't tell w^hat was going on between those two. There 
was not, to my knowledge. I was not in the office at all times 
when Morton was there. 

39th. Did you, at the time of the interview at your house, know 
of any negotiations going on between your son and Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

40th. At the time Dr. Jackson came to your house, and inquired 
for your son, Robert H. Eddy, had application to your son been 
made for the patent ? 

Ans. I think there had, by Dr. Morton. 

41st. Do you know whether your son had been to the labora- 
tory of Dr. Jackson, in relation to the ether patent, before the 
time when, as you state, in answer to 5th interrogatory, Dr. Jack- 
son came to your house ? 

Ans. I think he went up there, and the Doctor was absent. 
He saw Mrs. Jackson, and not the doctor. He might have gone 
there a half-dozen times, and I not know it. 

42d. Will you please state what Dr. Jackson said w^hen he came 
to your house, and what was said to him at the interview before 
referred to ? 



294 

Ans. I cannot state it without referring to my letter to the sur- 
geons. That states the whole of it. 

48d. Who began the conversation touching the ether matter ? 

Ans. I don't know which mentioned it first. I think I did. 

44th. Did Dr. Jackson state that Dr. Morton had entire confi- 
dence in his (Dr. Jackson's) knowledge, and that he would impli- 
|lg^> citly follow his (Dr. Jackson's) directions, or anything to this 
effect ? 

Ans. No, sir ; not to my recollection, 
i 45th. Before your son came home, on the evening spoken of 
in your answer to 5th interrogatory, w^hat, if anything, had you 
said to Dr. Jackson about the patent ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that I said anything about it. 

46th. Did Dr. Jackson, in answer to your question on the matter 
of the new discovery, say anything of Wells and his experiments ? 

Ans. I think he did. I think he said that Wells had pretended 
that he had made some discovery, and that there w^as a trial of it 
at the College, I think, and that it had failed. 

47th. Did he say anything in relation to an idea of Dr. Morton, 
when he come for a bag to his laboratory, about affecting the 
imagination of his nervous patients ? 

AnSo Yes, he did. I have stated it in my letter. 

48th. Will you please state what Dr. Jackson said was Morton's 
idea of affecting the imagination. 

Ans. I think it the same experiment which he said had been 
made in France, by dropping water on a man whose eyes were 
bandaged. The man supposed he was bleeding. 

49th. Did Dr. Jackson say that he first asked Morton why he 
did not try what Wells had used. 

Ans. No, sir ; not to my recollection. 

50th. Did Dr. Jackson say anything about nitrous oxide, at 
this interview ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

51st. Did Dr. Jackson say that he told Morton he had better 
try something which would have a real effect, instead of using 
atmospheric air? 

Ans. He said he told him that he had better use ether, or some- 
thing else of that kind, that atmospheric air was not the thing, 

52d. Did he say, or give any reason why he said atmospheric 
air was not the thing ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that he did. He might have done so. 

53d. Will you now please state v/hat you began just now to 
say, by way of explanation of the last few questions? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson said that the experiment had been tried by 
Dr. Wells, at the college — the Medical College, I suppose he 
meant — and it was a failure. I think he said Dr. Wells used 
some gas, it was not sulphuric ether. I think he said it was 
chloric ether. 



295 

54th. Did Dr. Jackson, at this interview at your house, state 
that he asked Morton why, instead of using atmospheric air to 
affect the imagination, he did not use nitrous oxide, or "some 
gas" to produce a real effect? 

Ans. I don't think he did ; he said ether ; that is, as I under- 
stood it. Dr. .Jackson told him to use ether. 

DOth. Whether or not, he said "some gas," or spoke of some, 
before he said that he told Morton to use ether? 

Ans. No; I don't recollect that there was anything of that 
kind. 

56th. What is the memorandum which you hold in your hand? 

Ans. It is only a memorandum which I have taken off myvself 
to refresh my memory. 

57th. Of what is that the memorandum ? 

Ans. Of the interview with Dr. Jackson on the evening when 
he was at my house. 

58th. Is that the memoranda referred to iii your previous 
answers? 

Ans. No, sir. I had no memoranda of ray previous answers at 
the time I gave them. 

59th. When and where was the memoranda made to which 
you have just been looking? 

Ans. It was made at my house, last evening, principally ex- 
tracts from my letter to the surgeons. 

60th. Will you please answer the questions nov/ to be put, 
without any more reference to those memoranda? 

Ans. If I can answer them ( orrectly. I will. If not, I will 
refer to the memoranda. 

61st. Can you not answer without referring to your memo- 
randa? 

Ans. In many instances I might, perhaps not in all, give the 
most correct answer. 

62d. Is your memory good, reliable and accurate, as to past 
conversations ? 

Ans. Pretty good for a man sixty-nine years of age. 

63d. You say you asked Dr. Jackson, on the evening at your 
house, to relate the particulars of the new discovery. Did you 
pay particular attention to his answers? 

Ans. Yes, sir; I think I did. 

64th. Was the conversation between Dr. Jackson and yourself 
alone, or did the ladies present join in it? Who were present 
besides Dr. Jackson and .yourself ? 

Ans. The ladies did not join in the conversation. The ladies, 
Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Bridge, and I think. Miss Bartlett, who were 
all who were present, besides Dr. Jackson and me, were con- 
versing with themselves. Dr. Jackson and I sat on the opposite 
side of the room. I don't think they paid any attention to what 
we said. I have asked Mrs. Bridge since, if she did not remem- -^SS 



296 

ber what Dr. Jackson said on that evenmg. She said no ; she 
did not remember anything at all about it. 

65th. What is the name of Dr. Jackson's wife's mother? 

Ans. Mrs. Bridge, the lady I refer to. 

66th. Are you sure that Mrs. Bridge was present at the inter- 
view at your house, about which you have testified ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. Mrs. Bridge and Mrs. Jackson came before the 
doctor came, to spend the evening. 

67th. Are you as sure of this as of any other matter you have 
testified to, as taking place at this interview ? 

Ans. I think I am. 

68th. Did Dr. Jackson state that he asked Dr. Morton, or said 
to him anything about Wells' experiments, or about what Wells 
used? 

Ans. No; I don't recollect that he did. 

69th. Do you remember that Dr. Jackson stated, that when 
Morton was going from his laboratory with the bag, he followed 
him, and took the bag away from him ? 

Ans. No, sir. He did not state anything of the kind to me. 

70th. Did Dr. Jackson state that he told Morton to go to Bur- 
nett's? 

Ans. No, sir. 

71st. Did he not say that his first answer to Morton was " why 
•don't you try something which will have a real effect," or can't 
you recall the words? 

Ans. He did not use the word '^real effect." He recommended 
him to use ether, as I have stated before ; that that v/ould put her 
to sleep, and he could control her. Those are the words, as near 
as I can recollect; that was the substance of them. If you will 
permit me to refer to my memoranda, I will give you the exact 
words. It was that, if he would give her ether, he could get the 
control of her and could pull her tooth out ; that was the substance 
of it. I don't know that they were his exact words. 

72d. What, if anything, did Dr. Jackson say about careless- 
ness, or boldness, or recklessness of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. He said he was a reckless fellow for using the sulphuric 
H^a. ether as he did, and he would kill somebody with it yet. 

73d. Did he specify any instances of recklessness, or say what 
talk he had heard about Morton's using it? 

Ans. No, sir. 

74th. Do you remember that Dr. Jackson said that it was ne- 
cessary to have an operation — a surgical operation, performed? 

Ans. I can't recollect exactly that he did say anything on that 
point, without referring to my minutes. He might have said it. 
I have looked at my minutes, and don't find anything of that 
kind; still, he might have said it. 

7Dth. Did he epeak of the need or use of using or trying ether 
in any operation, at this interview ? 



297 

Ans. I don't think he did. 

76th. Do you not recollect that, when Dr. Jackson came to 
your house, his wife came with him, on the evening of the con- 
versation testified about by you ? 

Ans. His wife did not come with him ; I am very sure of it. 
She was there when Dr. Jackson came. 

77th. How long was this conversation at your house ? 

Ans. My son came home at nine o'clock, I think exactly. The 
Doctor came tkere a little past eight. 

78th. Was there a fire in the room where you had the conver- 
sation with Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. No, sir : I ilon't think there was. We don't make a fire 
in the parlor where we were, until it is quite cold. There might 
have been some fire in the furnace. 

79th. Can you, from your memory, state how Dr. Jackson be- 
gan his answer to your inquiry, when you asked for the history of 
the new discovery ? 

Ans. He said Morton called upon him and wanted to borrow 
his gas-bags. That is the way he began it. 

80th. Did or not. Dr. Jackson say anything to you, in this 
interview, of the degree or kind of certainty a scientific man re- 
quired, before publishing a discovery ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

81st. Whether or not the subf.tance of one part of Dr. Jackson's 
conversation with you was a statement of his own knowledge of 
the effects of sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. No, sir. No farther than he said he could put the person 
to sleep, whom he wished to quiet ; — that the effect of the ether 
would be to put her to sleep. 

82d. Did Dr. Jackson say anything about advertisements of Dr. 
Morton in reference to ether ? 

Ans. Not to me. 

83d. Whether or not it was a matter of considerable considera- 
tion w4th you, before you wrote the letter to the surgeons of the 
hospital ? 

Ans. I had thought a good deal of it. My son had told me 
that there had been a discovery made by which a person's flesh 
could be cut without giving him pain. I told him I could not 
believe it, and that led me to make the inquiry of Dr. Jackson. 
I think T reflected pretty well before I wrote the letter, for I 
thought it might be made some use of, going into a public institu- 
tion. 

84th. Whether or not you showed your son, R. H. Eddy, the 
letter, before writing it out from your rough draft, in the shape in 
which it now appears in print ? 

Ans. I don't think I did. I have no remembrance of it. I 
think I told him what I had written afterwards, but not before I 
had written it. The surgeons' letter was directed to both of us. 



298 

85th. Whether or not, in your answer to the fifth interrogatory, 
you took your published letter and read that ? 

Ans. I think I looked at part of it, when an objection was made 
hy Mr. A. Jackson, Jr., to my doing so. 

86th. Whether or not, instead of givmg your testimony from 
your memory, you read your letter ? 

Ans. I read my letter first, and then gave my testimony, be- 
cause it was part of the evidence. 

87th. Whether or not you said that this letter brought the 
matter better to your mind than anything else ? 

Ans. I might have said so ; — said it refreshed my memory, or 
something of that kind. I had not read that letter for a long time 
previously to my reading of it here. 

88th. Did you read your letter sentence by sentence, pausing 
long enough for Mr. Putnam to write what you read ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

89th. What, if anything, have you heard your son say about 
inducing Dr. Jackson to agree to sign an application for a patent? 

Ans. I don't recollect that I heard him say anything about it. 
I have not ha^I much conversation with him about it. 1 was there 
when Dr. Jat ^son came to sign the application, but I did not con- 
verse with him about it. I generally get up and go out, when 
anybody comes in to see about a patent. 

90th. Do you know, on the part of your son, of any calcula- 
tions as to pecuniary value of his interest in the patent made in 
October and November, 1846, or of any between yourself and 
your son ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

91st. Whether or not, at the interview at your house, or at 
about that time your son said that he was afraid that Dr. Jackson 
would refuse to sign the papers, or back out, before he could get 
the papers drawn, he found Dr. Jackson so prejudiced against 
patents ? 

Ans. No, sir ; not to my recollection. 

92d. You say, in answer to 7th interrogatory, that you have no 
recollection of any conversation afterwards with Dr. Jackson ; — 
after the interview at your house, when and where next did you 
converse \vith Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. I don't recollect of conversing with him on the subject at 
all after that. 

93d. When and where did you have a conversation with Dr. 
Jackson about a splendid ether establishment? 

Ans. I never had any such conversation with him. It was with 
Morton. [I told Morton that he had better let Dr. Jackson have 
an interest in his patent. I told him I thought Dr. Jackson un- 
derstood better the manufacturing of ether , and they both together 
could make money out of it.] 

(The part in brackets objected to, as not responsive.) 



299 

94th. What did you say to Dr. Jackson about his receiying 
twenty-fire cents for each ether label he signed, if anything ? 

Ans. Nothing. 

95th. What, if anything, do you know of discussions in Dr. 
Jackson's presence, about European patents? 

Ans. I don't know anything. 

96th. If you know anything about this, please state it ? 

Ans. I know nothing about it, except that I think Dr. Morton 
was at my son's office, to see something about European patents, 
but I know nothing of what was said. He generally was pretty 
private. He talked low. 

97th. Do you remember an interview at your son's office, when 
Mr. Hayes came in, in behalf of Dr. Jackson? 

Ans. I could not state the conversation. I recollect that Mr. 
Hayes w^as once at the office. 

98th, Do you recollect of rising and saying, "five per cent, of 
European patents, for I marked it on a newspaper?" 

Ans. It is not in my recollection now. I don't know what it 
has reference to. 

99th. How many times was Mr. Hayes present at your son*s 
office? 

Ans. I can't tell. I saw him there once or twice. I don^t 
know that I saw him there more than onee. Still he might have 
been there. 

100th. Do you recollect that Dr. Jackson came to the office 
and said that he intended to appeal to the French Academy? 

Ans. No, sir. I have no recollection of any such thing. 

101st. Do you remember that there was haste and hurry at the 
time Dr. Jackson came and signed the application for a patent? 

Ans. I don't know that there was any particular hurry about ^^--sas 
it. I think he sat down and read the application, or the patent. *^=:&^ 
I don't remember that he was in anv hurrv about it. 

102d. When did he read this ? 

Ans. I don't remember the exact date. 

103d, Do you remember anything that took place at your son's 
office, when Dr. Jackson there signed the application for a patent? 

Ans. I could not tell distinctly what was said or done, I saw 
Dr. Jackson sit down and sign some papers; what they were I 
don't knov/. I supposed they were the papers to send on to 
Washington for the patent. I did not read them. 

104th. What do you know of any sending out to Europe by 
your son to secure patents? 

Ans, I know nothing, otherwise than I understood that he had 
sent out. 

105th. Do you know what was the extent of his interest in thf. 
European patents? 

Ans. No, sir. 



300 

106th. Do you remember a time at your son's office, when Dr. 
Jackson was present, when strong and emphatic language was 
used by him, by yovi, and your son? 

Ans. No, sir. There is nothing in my recollection now, if 
there was anything. There might have been. 

107th. Was there not an interview of a stormy character ? 

Ans. It is not within my recollection that there was anything 
said very stormy, or very violent. 

108th. If, as you say, there might have been such an interview, 
was this before or after the meeting Dr. Jackson in Court street, 
as you have stated in answer to 7th interrogatory ? 

Ans. I think it was before. I don't recollect of seeing Dr. 
Jackson at my son's office more than twice. 

109th. Was not Dr. Jackson at your son's office, when you 
were there several times with Mr Hayes ? 

Ans. No, sir. I think Mr. Hayes was with him at the time he 
signed the papers. I saw him sign, but I wont be positive. I 
don't reccollect any other time. 

110th. When was your letter, inquired of in 8th interrogatory, 
first published ; — whether or not in Mr. Bowditch's Report of the 
Board of Trustees of Massachusetts General Hospital ? 

Ans. I think it was first published in that report. 

111th. Did you know of any claim connected with etherization, 
of Dr. Smilie's, bought out by your son, Mr. R. H. Eddy? 

Ans. No, sir. 

112th. Whether or not, in the testimony here given, your mem- 
ory runs back to the incidents of 1846 themselves, entirely, with- 
out reference to any letter or letters of yours on the subject ? 

Ans. It does not entirely, but principally. 

CALEB EDDY. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, j 
County of Suffolk. j 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the de- 
position in perpetuam of Caleb Eddy, taken before us, upon the 
petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this Com- 
monwealth. 

GEORGE T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM. 
Two Justices of the Peace, and Counsellers at Law. 
Boston, December 14, 1852. 



301 

Deposition of the distinguished Surgeon, Dr. J. C. Warren, 
I, John C. Warren, of Boston, surgeon and physician, of law- 
ful age, being first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to in- 
terogatories by Richard H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. Wm. 
T, G. Morton. 

1st. Are you, and how long have you been, one of the surgeons 
of the Massachusetts General Hospital ? 

Ans. I am one of the surgeons of the Massachusetts General 
Hospital, and have been s© about thirty years. 

2d. Did you perform the operation at this hospital of October 
16, 1846, upon a patient under the effect of ether ? 

Ans. I performed an operation, at the request of Dr. Morton, The first 
at that time, upon a patient who was unper the influence of some- the^^Hospl- 
thing, I dont know what. I did not know then, and dont know tal perform- 
now. Dr. Morton called on me some days before that time, said ed by him, 
he had an article, the use of which would prevent pain in surgical admiSster^ 
operations, and asked me to use ii the first opportunity I had. lag ether. 
Two or three days after, not having any private operation, I em- 
ployed it on a patient at the hospital. 

od. Was this, and how far, a successful operation, as regards 
the insensibility of the patient ? 

Ans. As relates to pain, it was perfectly successful. The pa- Observe 
tient did not complain of pain at that time, nor even state that he *^^*, these 
had experienced pain, but, during the latter part of the operation, ^ere per- 
he was sufficiently conscious to speak and move freely. formed on 

4th. Was it Dr. Morton's request, that you should use it at the f ^^^^^jjj^^" 
hospital, or that you would use it in a surgical case, irrespective ^e^not ev^ 
of place? commnni- 

Ans. It was of a general nature, and, as I understood, referred eating the 
particularly to my private patient, but not having any private asent^used! 
patient to operate on at that moment, I applied it to a patient in 
the hospital. 

5th. What was the operation of October 16, 1846 ? 
Ans. It was an operation on a tumor about three inches long, 
on the left side of the neck, a dangerous vascular tumor, deeply 
situated. It was removed in about five minutes. 

6th. Before you used it, did you take means, by inquiry, or 
otherwise, to satisfy yourself of the safety and probable utility 
of this substance which Dr. Morton proposed to administer? 

Ans. I asked Dr. Morton whether the substance he proposed 
to me to use was certainly safe to the patient, and whether he 
was sure it would be effectual, as I had been anxious to find some- 
thing of the kind he proposed, and made repeated trials of articles 
without any satisfactory effect. He assured me m reply that the 
substance he proposed to employ was perfectly safe, and thought 
it would be effectual. 

Note. This and the subsequent depositions of the Surgeons of the Hospital, 
clearly show that Dr. Jackson's pretence of having made himself responsible lor 
the operations there, or made any arrangements for them, is false. 



302 

7th. Did he' refer to any, and what, dental experiments of his 
own? 

Ans. I think he did, but don't recollect the particulars. 

8th. Was this» operation of October 16, 1846, as far as you 
know, the first successful experiment of a surgical operation under 
the effect of an anaesthetic agent? 
1^^^ Ans. It was the first successful operation I ever witnessed un- 
der the effect of an anaesthetic agent, and the first of the kind I 
have known. 
^ 2d opera- 9th. Were you present at the hospital the next day, at the 
*^®^- operation performed by Dr. Hayward ? 

Ans. I was. The patient was mine, but was referred by me to 
Dr. Hayward. It was my tour of duty at the hospital. 

10th. What W8?s this operation, and how successful? 

Ans. The operation, I think, was the extirpation of a tumor 
from the arm, and was perfectly successful. 

11th. At the operation, did you or Dr. Hayward know what 
the agent was that was administered? 
1^^-* Ans. I did not, and I think he did not. 

]2th. Please state who administered the agent in these t^o 
cases. 
^^=* Ans. It was administered by Dr. Morton. 

13th. Were you present at the amputation by Dr. Hayward of 
November 7, 1846? If yea, what was the operation? 
Sd opera- Ans. The operation alluded to was, I presume, an amputation 
of the leg. I was present. 

14th. Was this the third experiment at the hospital ? 

Ans. I believe it was, or an excision of the lower jaw, a pain- 
ful and protracted operation, in which the patient's sufferings were 
greatly mitigated. These both took place on the same day — the 
excision of the jaw by me, and the amputation by Dr. Hayward. 

15th. How far was the anaesthetic part of the experiment at 
the amputation successful ? 

Ans. It was, I think, perfectly successful. 

16th. Who administered the anaesthetic agent and had charge 
^^^__^ of it during these two operations of the 7th of November? 
^^ Ans. Dr. Morton, as before. 

17th. Before the operations of November 7th were performed, 
was there, or not, a doubt as to whether this agent should be used 
in those cases ? If so, was it founded, or not, on the fact of its 
being secret or patented, or both? 
^^^ Ans. I think there was. We had an objection to using it on 
the ground that it was a patented discovery, and, after some con- 
versation between Dr. Hayward and myself, we concluded not to 
use it again, until this matter was explained to us. I presume 
that the secrecy, also, was one ground. 

18th. Did Mr. Morton, before the operation of November 7, 
send you a letter explanatory of the nature of the agent used ? 



303 

Ans. He did. 

19th. Can you produce and annex that iette* ? 

Ans. I am not aware that I have the letter, though I am cnu^ 
iident that such a letter was written. If I am not mistaken, the 
letter was laid on the. table in the surgeons room for others to see, 
and that, when we came to want, it after two or three days, we 
could not find it. I feel very confident that the letter disappeared, 
and that I have not got it. 

20th. Was that letter read by you to the surgeons at the hos- 
pital, or shown by you to them, and for what purpose, at or be- 
fore the operations of November 7th ? How soon before ? 

Ans. I think it vras shown to them for the purpose of obtaining 
their opinion as to the expediency of operating again before an 
explanation of the above-mentioned topics was afforded, but how 
long before I can't tell exactly. 

2ist. What was the substance of this letter? 

Ans. I am unable to answer this question precisely. I think it 
contained the explanation which we desired to have, and, at any 
rate, we were w^ell satisfied with it, and concluded to continue 
the new article in our operations. 

22d. Did it or not, to your recollection, state that the agent 
was ether? 

Ans. I cannot answer decidedly, but I think it did. 

23d. Has sulphuric ether, or not, been used at this hospital ever 
since, and how successfully, in surgical cases ? 

Ans. It has been used ever since, perhaps with a temporary in- 
termission, when chloroform was first introduced. The latter agent :^:>m 
was substituted for a while, but, being discovered to be danger- 
ous, was gradually omitted, and the use of ether restored. The 
success of ether has been uniformly favorable in this hospital. 

24th. Is, or not, chloroform a safe anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. We do not consider it safe. Now and then it produces ^g:»^ 
dangerous effects. 

25th. Have you used nitrous oxide gas as an ansesthetic agent 
io your private or hospital practice ? 

Ans. I have not. <^^ 

26th. Do you know of its being used successfully ? 

Ans. No. <c^|| ' 

27th. Were you present at an operation performed at the 
Bromfield House, on or about November 21st, 1846, under the operation 
effect of ether ? at Brown- 

Ans. I was. This was a private operation with ether, and was ^^^ ^9?^f ' 
performed by Dr. J. Mason Warren. There was another at the Dn Jackson 
same place, performed by him, on the 12th of November. This present a- 
was the first private operation. mong spec- 

28th. Who had charge of the anaesthetic part of these experi- ^J^t"^ g°* 
ments ? time. 

Ans. Dr. Morton. ^^SSS 



304 

29th. Were there many spectators present at these experiments 
at the Bromfield House ? Please name some of them. 

Ans. There Vv^ere, I think, ten or twelve gentlemen : Dr. C. T. 
Jackson, Dr. Reynolds, Dr. J. V. C. Smith, Drs. Flagg, Gould, 
Shurtleff, Lawrence, Parsons, Briggs, and others. I refer to the 
r^- operation on the 21st of November. At present, I do not recol- 
lect who were present on the 12th of November, if any one. 

30th. Did Dr. C. T. Jackson take any other or further part 
than any other of the gentlemen you have named ? 
No part ta- Ans. I do not recollect that he did. 

ken by Dr. 31st. Had you ever known him to be present at a case of ad- 
ministration of ether before this ? 

Ans. I cannot say certainly, but I have an impression of his 
having been present at an operation at the hospital. 

32d. When was this operation at the hospital, at which you 
think he was present ? Was it either of the first four to which 
you have testified ? 

Ans. I am unable to say. 

33d. If he was present, did he take any other or further part 
than the other spectators ? 

Ans. Not that I recollect. 
^^^ 34th. Has Dr. C. T. Jackson ever, to your own knowledge, 
taken any part or share in the administration of ether in a surgi- 
cal case? 

Ans. I don't remember that he has. 

35th. How long did Dr Morton conduct the inhalation at the 
hospital? 

Ans. As far as I can remember, he attended in four or five ope- 
rations, but I cannot be precise. 

36th. In private practice of your own, or where you attended, 
hov^ long did Dr. Morton continue to administer the ether ? 

Ans. Never after the Bromfield operations, so far as I remem- 
ber. 

37th. What course was then taken ? 

Ans. After the article was fully understood to be ether, it was 
employed by the surgeons themselves : first, by various kinds of 
apparatus ; and, finally, by a sponge, which is the practice at the 
present day, and which I beheve I first used. 

38th. Did you meet with any case of unsuccessful administra- 
tion by Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. No. The etherizations were more or less perfect in dif- 
^^* ferent cases. At first, we were very much puzzled with these 
variations in the eflfect of ether, but soon came to understand they 
were only different degrees of anaesthesia. 

39th. Why were the various kinds of apparatus laid aside, and 
the sponge used instead of it ? 

Ans. Apparatus was soon discovered to be unnecessary, and 
other modes of administration were found more convenient. 



HS^ 






305 

40th. Do you recollect the case in which you first used the 
sponge without apparatus? 

Ans. I do not. 

41st. Please look at your communication to the Surgical Jour- 
nal of December 9th, 1846, page 378, the following passage : 
" The breathing of the etherial vapor appears to operate directly 
on the cerebral system, and the consequent insensibility is propor- 
tionate to the degree of cerebral affection." What is your pres- 
ent experience and opinion on that point? 

Ans. These theoretical points have been discussed very largely, 
but not fully settled . I think the present opinion is in favor of 
insensibility, being produced by an unoxgenated state of the 
folood, produced by the anaesthetic agent, either directly or in- 
directly. So far as I could give an answer to the question, with- 
out more reflection, it would be in support of what I have there 
stated. 

42d. Do you recollect a conversation between yourself, Dr. 
Gould, and Dr. C. T. Jackson, respecting this discovery, about 
the time of the operations of November- 7th ? When was this ? 

Ans. I recollect it perfectly well ; it took place at a meeting ^^'- '^^^- 
of the Thurday Evening Club at my house, about the time of 7jJ'^Qjigp^' 
the introduction of ether as an ansesthetic. Dr. Gould and my- Warren that 
self were engaged in conversation on the subject of the recent ^^j Jack- 
surgical operations for anaesthesia. While we were conversing, pers^^^who 
Dr. Jackson approached, on which Dr. Gould said, '^ There is suggested 
Dr. Jackson ; he knows more about it than I do." Whereon, I to Morton 
turned to Dr. Jackson, and asked him what he knew about the *?^ ^^^ ^^ 
use of ether as an anaesthetic. *^0h," said he, "I was the per- Seeparticu- 
son who suggested the use of it to Morton ;" and he added, larly as 
either then or afterw^ards, "I advised him to go to you and get ^'^ " ^^^Z'^^" 
you to do some surgical operations with it, otherwise he might wliich j'ack- 
kill somebody, and then he would have the whole responsibility," son now 
or words to that effect. This is all I recollect of that conver- ^l^^T ^^* 
sation. wholly A.V. 

43d. Ey '^ afterw^ards," do you mean the same evening or a 
future time ? 

Ans. A future time. I could not say w^hether it was thrit 
evening or subsequently. 

44th. Was this or not the first communication you had had 
with Dr. C. T. Jackson on the subject of ether or any anaes- 
thetic agent ? 

Ans. It was the first. n.,fl?.a^r'^" 

/ifr-i T>k 11 . 1 -1 . , , miinication 

4oth. Do you recollect how many surgical operations had been from Jack- 
performed at this time ? son before 
Ans. I cannot tell without reference dates; it would be easy r[!J^^^^^^^ 
to determine. 

46th. Did you at this time know that the agent was ether ? 
Ans. I am unable to answer that question. 
20 



306 

47th. How longj and how intimately, have you known Dr. C 
T. Jackson ? 

Ans. I have known Dr. Jackson many years — perhaps twenty. 

Witness' I have been in the habit of seeins" him occasionally, and meetingr 
associations 1 • • ^i • • j.* ' '^ 

•ffith Dr J ^^^ ^^ ^^ various societies. 

48th. What was the object of this club ? Is it or not called 
the "Warren Club," after yourself? How often did it meet? 

Ans. It was a club intended to promote scientific and social 
pursuits. It was originally called the ''Warren Club/*' but I 
requested that the name should be omitted in the notifications, 
and now it is called the "' Thursday Evening Club." It meets 
once a fortnight, and has usually done so. 

49th. How long have you known Dr. W. T. G. Morton? 
What have been your relations with him ? 

Ans. I knew Dr. !\Iorton a year or tY-ro before the discovery 
of ether as an anaesthetic. I had seen him, perhaps, two or three 
times before that event. My relations with liim have been no 
Konewith o^^^r tha,n that of a general acquaintfince. 
r. M.D 50th. Did he attend your sm-gical lectures in 1844 ? 

Ans. Yery possibly he did, but I cannot state it as a fact. 
51st. Before this conversation with Dr. Gould and Dr. Jack- 
son, to which you have referred, had you any suspicion that Dr. 
Jackson had any part in this discov-ery, or any particular interest 
in it ? (Objected to, as inquiring of the suspicion of witness.) 
Dr. War- -^^s. I had not. 
ren had 52d. Eetore this conversat'on with Dr. Gould at your house, 
never cob- to which you have referred, had you or not, in any way, asso- 
Jacl^n's ^^''^^^^ ^^' Jsckson's name Avith this discovery or these experi- 
name with ments . 

the discov- Ans. Not that I recollect. 

ery till Not. ^^g^^ -jq-^ jj Jackson ever, at any time, request you to per- 
ith; after It ^ . , . ^' -^ . ' J -' . t' 

was fully es- lorm any surgical experiment or experiments, m connexion with 

tablished in any ansesthetic agent ? 

public opm- ^Qg^ jjg ^[^ afj-gp -j-j^a^ period ; he wrote me a letter request- 
ing me to perform some experiments at the hospital. 1 have 
looked for that letter, but cannot find it. 

54th. Are you sure, and how are you sure, that he wrote you 
any such letter ? 

Ans. I recollect perfectly his writing a letter of that descrip- 
tion. My recollection of the substance of that letter is not 
clear ; but I am clear that he did write such a letter. I was 
rendered more certain of my ha\ing received such a letter by 
conversation with Dr. Gould in the winter or spring of 1852, 
when we were called upon by a committee of Congress to give 
evidence in relation to the ether subject generally. I will state 
further, that the recollection of it was brought to my mind by 
Dr. Gould at that time. 



307 

55th. Please to state the substance of your conversation with 
Dr. Gould in 1852 on the subject of this letter from Dr. Jackson 
to you. 

Ans. I received two applications from Congress — one from the 
chairman of a committee of Congress, and, at a subsequent 
period, another from the honorable Mr. Stanly, a member of that 
committee. There was a distance of two or three months be- 
tween these applications. I am not able to state at this moment 
on which of these applications I was led to converse with Dr. 
Gould. Having these applications from Congress, and having 
previously dismissed the subject of the controversy from my mind 
for two or three years, I was at first at a loss what answers to 
give, and was apprehensive 1 might make some mistake from 
want of recollection on the subject. Knowing that Dr. Gould 
was well acquainted with the subject, I thought we might mu- 
tually aid each other in reviving the recollection of important 
facts. I recollect distinctly that there was a conversation be- 
tween Dr. Gould and myself at that time on the subject of the 
letter. I asked him whether he recollected such a letter. He 
said he did know that such a letter w^as written. I then became 
satisfied in my own mind that I was right in believing in the 
existence of such a letter, although I had previously some un- 
certainty. The object of the letter, as I recollect, was to invite 
me to go to the hospital on a certain day and to apply ether. 

56th. Did Dr. Jackson, in this letter, express any dissatisfac- 
tion with the previous experiments at the hospital, performed 
under Dr. Morton's superintendence ? 

Ans. I have an obscure recollection that he did, but cannot 
positively aver it. 

57th. What was the particular purpose or object of the appli- 
cation of the ether in this case ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that there was any particular object in 
that case. 

58th. Did you comply with the request ? 

Ans. I went to the hospital about that time, and attended the 
administration of ether, but not particularly on account of the 
letter. ^ It was my duty to go there about that time. 

59th.' Was Dr. Jackson, or any one in his behalf, present at 
or about this time ? Did anything occur different from the usual 
previous experiments ? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson was, I think, present about that time, but 
whether anything particular occurred, I do not remember. 

60th. If present, did he take any charge or superintendence 
of, or give any direction concerning the ether ? 

Ans. None that I remember. 

61st. Was it then administered by the surgeons themselves, or 
was Dr. Morton still employed ? 

Ans. I cannot tell how it was at that time. 



308 

62d. Did you erer know Dr. Jackson to be present more than 
at this time at the hospital ? and then was he more than once 
present ? 

Ans. I cannot answer that question certainly, but my recollec- 
tion is that he was more than once present. ] should say twice, 
hut I state this with some hesitation. I have a perfect recollec- 
tion of his being there, but how often I know not. 

63d. Did he erer make to you any other request about an ex- 
periment at the hospital, except by this letter ? 

Ans. I think not, 
1^^^ (54th. About what time did you receive this letter from Dr. 
Jackson ? How long after the conversation at your house with 
him and Dr. Gould ? ' 

Ans. I can say it was within a month after the first adminis- 
tration of ether, but exactly the time I cannot indicate. 
^^^ 6jth. Should you or not have gone on attending these experi- 
ments just the same if you had not received it ? 

Ans. I should have gone on attending the experiments just the 
same if I had not received it. 

66th. At the time of your conversation with Dr. Gould and 
Dr. Jackson, to which you have testified, did you say anything 
to him about his attending himself at the hospital ? 

Ans. I think I did. I think I said to him he ought to he 
there, or words to that effect. 

67th. What reply did he make? 

Ans. I believe he said he could not conveniently be there. He 
was going out of town, cr something of that kind. 

6Sth. Did he in fact attend on this invitation from you : 

Ans. He came there afterwards, but whether on the ground of 
that invitation or not, I cannot say. 

69th. What led you to say to him that he ought to be there, 
and in what connexion was it said. 

Ans. I had confidence in him as a great chemist and scientific 
man, and I understood at that time that he was acquainted with 
the subject of ether, and had made some suggestions to Dr. Mor- 
ton. So far as I remember, it was towards the conclusion of the 
conversation. I, finding that he was acquainted with, and inter- 
ested in, the subject, naturally invited him to be present. This 
question recalls this part of the conversation which I had for- 
gotten when I gave ray former answer. 

Cress Interrogaiories, by ^i. Jackson, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. Have you not, while practising medicine and surgery, had 
occasion to send your pupils to bleed patients, or to administer 
xemedies prescribed by you ? 



309 

Ans. In the former part of my life I hxave so, but not of late 
years. 

2d. In cases where you have thus sent your pupils to adminis- 
ter clirative means prescribed by }0U, did you or not consider your- 
self responsible for the effect of the remedies, so far as a physician 
can be held responsible for the effects of his prescriptions. 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

3d. In case you should have discovered a new means of curing 
a disease, which means were generally regarded as highly dan- 
gerous to life, and so set down in the standard medical authori- 
ties, and should direct one of your pupils to administer this 
means, should you or not be regarded by medical men as the one 
responsible for the effects of that new means of cure ? 

(This question objected to. J. P. P.) 

Ans. I think I should, 

4th. In case the means presented by you should prove directly See ans, 
fatal to the patient, would not you alone be held responsible, *<^ 42d in- 
proyided your directions had been carefully complied with in the that^^Jac2 
administration of the means ? son took no 

Ans. Yes, sir. ^^^^S^ee^il' 

5th. Is it not a fact that physicians' prescriptions are generally ^ J" g^^^^^' 
administered by other persons than the physician himself ; and is terrogatory 
it, or not, generally the case that the ph3'3ician is absent at the &c., and 
time the prescribed medicines are administered by the attendants? ^^^^ cross, 

Ans. It is. 

6th. Did you, or not, address a note to ])r, Jackson, dated Oc- 
tober 28, 1846, asking him to inform you concerning the nature 
of the agent used at the hospital in Dr. Morton's administration^ 
and asking him to procure the use of the instrument for inhalaiicn 
of it for the hospital ? 

Ans. I did. ^ 

7th. Whether, or not, this is the note here produced, and a 
copy of which is annexed to the deposition ? 

Ans. It is. (This copy is annexed by me, marked A.) J. P. P. 

8th. Whether, or not. Dr. Jackson replied to this note on the 
28th of October, 1846, or the day after, or within a fev/ days 
after ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of any, but dare say that he did 
make some reply. 

9th. Will you be kind enough to look among your papers for 
his reply, and annex it, or a copy of it, if it can be found. 

Ans. t will. 

10th. Whether, or not, the free gift of the right to use the 
ether in surgical operations was subsequent to your writing this 
note ? 

Ans. I think it was. 

11th. Whether, or not, you remember the words that Dr. Mor- 
on used when he first came to you, some days before the first 



310 

•operation? Whether he said ^^ he had got hold^' of a means of 
preventing pain in surgical operations ? 

Ans. I don't recollect the precise words. 

12th. Did he leave you uninformed at the time as to the origin 
of this discovery of a means of preventing pain by the agent 
about to be applied by ^^ou ? 

Ans. Entirely. 

13th. Whether^ or not, at this interview, he stated that the 
means had been discovered by himself, or that he did not say he 
became possessed of the means of preventing pain in surgical 
operations ? 

Ans. He did not say how he became possessed of the means of 
preventing pain in surgical operations. 

14th. Whether, or not, Dr. Morton informed you that be had 
invented an apparatus for the inhalation of a vapor, the effect of 
which was to produce a state of total insensibility to pahi ? 

Ans. I don't recollect anything about an apparatus ; I think it 
quite possible he might have spoken of one. 

15th, When did you first learn that the agent employed bj 
Dr. Morton was notning but pure sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I think it was after the second operation at the hospital. 

16th. Did Dr. Morton make any communication to you respect- 
ing the nature of the agent used, after, or at the time of the first 
operation at the hospital, on the same day of the first operation ? 

Ans. He did not inform me of the nature of the substance em- 
ployed on the day of the operation, but I think he did a few days 
after. 

17th, Whether, or noi, you learned from Dr. C. T. Jackson, 
at your house, on the Thursday evening before referred to, after 
your first operation with the ansesthetic agent at the Massachu- 
setts General Hospital, that the substance used for the prevention 
of pain in that operation was sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I did not ; I was entirely ignorant of the nature of the 
substance employed at that time, but I endeavored to satisfy my- 
self that it was a safe and, probably, an efficacious article. 

18th. Was there, or not, some aromatic substance in the fluid 
used at the first operation, besides that of sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. There was, I examined the flagon after the first, or some 
ulterior operation, and could not discover, by the odor, what that 
substance was ; I suspected it to be morphine, and asked whether 
morphine was dissolved in the fluid. 

19th. How soon after the first operation at the hospital was the 
meeting of the Thursday Evening Club at your house ? Whether 
on Thursday, the 22d of October, the first two operations being 
on the 16th, Friday, and the 17th, Saturday, of October ? 

Ans. The meeting of the club was on Tuesday, the 27th day 
of October ; this was the first meeting of the club, and the even- 



311 

ing of the week for the regular meeting of the club had not been 
agreed upon. 

20th. Whether you remember that your note of October 28th 
was written the day after the meeting of the club at your house ? 

Ans. I should not have recollected it without seeing the note. 

21st. Whether, or not. Dr. Jackson informed you, on this 
evening of October 27th, that he sent Dr. Morton to request you 
to use the nevv' means of preventing pain in a surgical operation ? 

Ans. Ke certainly did say that he advised Dr. Morton to apply 
to me to perform a surgical operation with his article, but whether 
it was on that evening or at a subsequent time, I cannot remem- 
ber. 

22d. Whether, or not, on this evening of October 27th, Dr. ^^g^ 
Jackson, at your house, said, "I wish you would try the ether in 
a capital operation, such as an amputation ?" and whether, or 
not, you said, " there is to be another operation at the hospital, 
an amputation," and requested Dr. Jackson to come and admin- 
ister the ether himself, for you did not like to have such a quack- 
ish fellow as Morton about the hospital, or words to the same 
effect ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that I used language of that description, 
or that he did either at that time ; I don't recollect of anything 
of this kind being said. 

23d. W^hether, or not, you have stated that this discovery orig- 
inated with Dr. Jackson ? (Objected to, as not inquired about in 
direct examination.) 

Ans. I don't recollect ever to have used precisely those words; 
I have said, whenever inquired of, that Dr. Jackson suggested the 
idea of giving ether as an anaesthetic, and that Dr. Morton first 
practised it. 

24th. Whether, or not, you have stated that Dr. Jackson was 
the head and Dr. Morton the hand, m the introduction of thts 
discovery into surgical practice ? 

(Same objection as last.) 

Ans. I have sometimes used those words. 

25th. Have you not introduced Dr. Jackson to distinguished 
gentlemen of science from abroad, as the discoverer of ether in 
surgical operations ? 

Ans. I think I have introduced Dr. Jackson to scientific gen- 
tlemen from abroad as the person who suggested the use of ether, 
but exactly the terms which I have employed in such case, I 
could not state. 

26th. Are you, or not, aware that Dr. C. T. Jackson has This first 
always, smce liis first communication with you on the subject of ^^^^^^i^i- 
etherization, claimed the discovery as his own? ^n27tirOct 

Ans. Yes. See p. 305. 

27th. Did you, or not, on the 27th of October, or after that, 
.^ay to Dr. Jackson, "I am glad to learn that this thing had a 



312 

scientific origin. I wonderad how such an ignorant person a« 
Morton got hold of a thing like this ;'' or words to the same 
effect ? 

Ans. I recollect distinctly having used the words contained in 
the first clause, but not the others ; that is, that I was glad to 
find that the discovery had a scientific origin. 

28th. Vv^hether or not you addressed to Dr. Gay a note re- 
specting a sum of money which might be obtained on a combined' 
application of Dr. Jackson and Dr. Morton ? Is this the note 
referred to ? 

Ans. I did address such a note, and the note shown me is the 
one referred to. 

(A copy of this note is annexed by me marked B. J. P. P.) 

29th. Have you, or not, Dr. Jackson's or Dr. Gay's reply to 
your proposal in this letter ? and if so, will you please annex them 
to this deposition, or a copy of them ? 

Ans. I am not aware that I have any such reply, but I will 
search for it, and if found, give a copy of it to be annexed. 

(The counsel for Dr. Morton objects to any answer from Dr. 
Gay being introduced in evidence. J, P. P.) 

30th. Was, or not, the application for this money given up in 
consequence of Dr. Jackson's refusal to allow his name to be 
associated with that of Dr. Morton, in making a joint appli- 
cation ? 

Ans. It was. 

31st. Has, or not, Dr. Jackson, on all proper occasions, stated 
and asserted his claims to the honor of the discovery of the eflfects. 
of ether in preventing pain in surgical operations ? * 

Ans. As far as I know, he has. 

32d. Have you, or not, known the fact that Dr. Jackson him 
self always has regarded the discovery of anaesthesia by ether 
vapor as exclusively his own ? 

Ans. I have understood that he has. 

33d. In the administration of ether, excluding the two occa- 
sions at the Bromfield House, will you please state on what occa- 
sions in your private practice. Dr. Morton has, in person, admin- 
istered the ether ? 

Ans. I think he did attend once or twice at private operations^ 
but I can't say positively that he^did. 

84th. Whether or not the reply of Dr. Jackson to your note 
of October 28th, stated at length the nature of the liquid used at 
the first two operations at the hospital ; and that the substance 
was pure, rectified, sulphuric ether ? 

(Objected to, because there is no evidence of a reply. J. P. P.)' 

Ans. I have no recollection of a reply from Dr. Jackson at that 
time. 



313 

35th. Whether, at the operation at the Bromfield House, on 
the 21st of November, 1846, Dr. J. Mason Warren administered 
the ether himself to the patient ? Was Williston the patient's 
name? 

Ans. I have no recollection on either of those points. 

36th. Wheth(r or not it was your tour of duty in attending 
at the hospital, when the first amputation was performed ? Whether 
or not this amputation was postponed from Saturday, October 
31st, the appointed day, to November 7th ? 

Ans. My tour of duty extended to the 31st of October, inclu- 
sive, and terminated then. If the operation was done November 
7th, it v/as not my tour of duty. I can't answer whether it was 
postponed. 

37th. Whether or not you knew that Dr. Jackson, during the 
years of 1846 and 1847, was very much engaged with the United 
States survey, and that in field-work he was necessarily absent 
much of this time from Boston ? 

Ans. I recollect that he was absent from Boston, and engaged, 
as I understood, in a survey directed by the United States gov- 
ernment. 

38th. Whether or not, at a meeting at Dr. Jackson's laboratory, 
on the 17th of November, 1846, when Dr. Ware, C. G. Loring, 
esq., and other gentlemen were present, you expressed your plea- 
sure that etherization had a scientific origin ? 

Ans. I have no distinct recollection of having at that time 
made use of the expression quoted, but I did use it at some period 
or other ; when, I cannot recollect. 

39th. Whether or not you remember that you then expressed 
the opinion, that, in the course Dr. Jackson had pursued in rela- 
tion to the first experiment under the use of ether, in extracting a 
tooth, he had made himself responsible, if any unpleasant conse- 
quences to the patient which had resulted from it ? 

Objected to. 

Ans. No, I don't recollect it. cSH 

40th. Whether, or not, on the evening at Dr. Jackson's labor- 
atory, Dr. Jackson stated that he thought that the responsibility 
of that first operation at the hospital rested upon you aad upon ^rj,^^^ gg_ 
himself? tion is di" 

Ans. I think it likely he might have said something of the kind, rected to 
but I have no distinct recollection of it. ^^* "^- ®^ 

*41st. Will you be kind enough to state the character of Pe- that Ferei- 
reira's Materia Medica. Whether it is a chemist's or physician's ra had 
book? printed, in 

Ans. It is a good many years since I noti(;ed the book. I sug^stion 
knew it was regarded as a valuable book at the time of its publi- which Dr. 
cation ; but exactly its character I don't remember. I should Jackson 
think it was rather a physician's than a chemist's book. have^^origl^ 

nated. 



314 

42d. Whether or not freedom from acids and alcohol in the 
ether, and a due admixture of atmospheric air in its exhalation, 
are the essential conditions of its safety and success when admin- 
istered ? 

Ans. They are. 

43d. Whether or not, in administering ether from a sponge, 
there is not a greater likelihood that the patient will receive a 
due share of atmospheric air, than when inhalers are used ? 

Ans. There is, I think. 

44th. In what, besides this last advantage of the sponge over 
the inhaler, is any preference for the sponge based ? 

Ans. The sponge is much more convenient to the surgeon and 
to the patient. 

45th. "Whether or not, on the second of January, 1847, or at 
some time. Dr. Jackson, at your instance, brought two bags full 
of oxygen to the hospital ? 

Ans. I have a perfect recollection of Dr. Jackson's bringing the 
bags of oxygen to the hospital. I think it likely that he might 
have done it at my request, but cannot positively assert the latter, 
I csnnot expect to recollect circumstances of this nature, at this 
distance of time, v>-ithout having had any paticular reason to note 
them when they occurred. 

46th. Whether or not you remember that this was dene by Dr. 
Jackson in consequence of the suggestion that etherization pro- 
duced, or was in itself, partial asphyxia ? 

Ans. I think that was the fact. 

47th. Whether or not the valve admitting atmospheric air, or 
some one of the valves of the inhalers, used at the hospital, was 
closed by means of a steel spring, so that a probe was sometimes 
used to raise it and to keep it open ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of this circumstance, but think it 
very likely to be true. 

48th. Whether you remember that what is stated in answer to 
the 42d interrogatory, as said by Dr. Jackson about the "^ whole 
responsibility" of some surgical operation under the influence of 
ether, was said by him at some interview after the meeting of the 
club at your house on the 27th of October ? 

Ans. I do not remember. I cannot tell whether it was at that 
meeting or after. 

49th. Will you please state any circumstances of Dr. Jackson's 
first conversation with vou at the meeting at your house of the 
club ? 

Ans. On hearing Dr. Jackson's remarks in reply to my ques- 
Thisis a^ion, I was greatly influenced in giving them full credit, by the 
cnrioTis appearance of total indifl'erence in his manner, whether we did 
commenta- qj. ^[^ ^qj- g^yg credence to his statement. 

Sckion's^' 50th. Has it not been very frequently observed that, in dental 
credibility, and surgical operations on etherized patients, after total uncon- 



315 

sciousness has passed away, there is a period of consciousness 
while there is no sense of pain ? 

Ans. Yes, that is now an established fact. At first it was not 
understood. It was thought, when those appearances of con- 
sciousness exhibited themselves, that etherization had partially- 
failed ; but, now that the subject is better understood, we, in a 
great number of cases, try to produce that state of semi- conscious- 
ness when the patient appears to be awake and sensitive, and yet 
experiences no pain. 

51st. Whether or not, in etherized patients, the spinal marrow 
is acted upon by the etherized blood, in the inhalation of ether, 
and thus insensibility to pain is produced ? 

Ans. There are different theories on the manner in which insen- 
sibility is produced. I think it likely to arise from the brain and 
spinal marrow being supplied with unoxygenated blood, which 
does not nourish it, nor support its natural function. 

52d. Is not the effect of etherized blood first upon the spinal 
marrow and medulla oblongata, before the cerebrum is affected ? 

Ans. I suppose they may be affected simultaneously, the circu- 
lation reaching them at about the same period of time ; but they 
may not be affected in the same degree at first. 

53d. Whether or not this letter is one addressed by you to Dr. 
Jackson, of October 21st, 1848 ; if so will you annex a copy ? 

Ans. It is. {A copy is annexed, marked C. J. P. P.) 

54th. Whether or not letters to you, an reference to the subject 
of etherization, from Dr. Jackson, if any, may hav® been lent to 
those parties, or any of them, w^ho have written pamphlets on the 
matter of sulphuric ether, or its discovery, and so have been lost ? 

Ans. I never lent one of Dr. Jackson's letters to any person. 

55th. Whether or not any person can be the author of a dis- 
covery in the inductive sciences, unless he either originates some 
new idea, or devises the means of establishing the truth of a con- 
jecture, whether more or less probable, previously brought to view 
by another person ? 

Ans. So far as I am able to answer that question, I should 
reply in the negative. 

56th. If there is any other matter within your knowledge, con- 
nected with the subject of etherization and its early history, not 
previously stated, will you please to state the same '? 

Ans. I don't recollect anything else of sufficient importance to 
be stated. 

Direct resumed by Mr. Dana, 

1st. In answer to the 50th cross interrogatory, you say that 
consciousness sometimes returns before insensibility ceases. Do 
you mean that a state of intelligent use of reasoning powers exists, 



316 

-while the patient is totally insensible ? Is not the brain more or 
less affected still ? 

Ans. The brain is partially affected, but the patient is able to 
speak and to reason, in some measure, but does not experience 
pain. The sentiment of pain and the power of reflection in reas- 
oning, are dependent on different parts of the nervous system, of 
course the affecting of the one does not neccessariiy involve the 
affecting of the other. I will mention a case. Two weeks since 
I removed a tumor from the shoulder of a lady — she was etheriz- 
ed, and for one moment seemed to be in a state of unconscious- 
ness, then awoke, talked very pleasantly during the rest of the 
operation three or four minutes, and when it was concluded, she 
had had a delightful visit to her friends, and of course had exper- 
ienced no pain. 

2d. Had she the perfect use of her intellectual powers ? Was 
she in a sane state ? Was she fully conscious ? 

Ans. I would not say she had the perfect use of her intellectual 
powers, but she talked in a rational way, whether she could have 
rationally answered a question proposed, I would not aver. I 
should say she was in a sane state. She was fully conscious to 
external objects. She saw and heard. This patient was entirely 
aware of the operation being done at the time. She expressed 
that distinctly, and that I have witnessed in other cases. 

3d. Did you inquire of her afterwards, as to her state of mind? 

Ans. I did, and she said she had had a very pleasant visit to 
her friends. I afterwards asked whether she was conscious of the 
operation, and she said she was. It was amusing to me to see her, 
from whom the blood was streaming, smile, and say she had no 
pain, and yet knew of the operation. Dr. Mason Warren and 
two others were present. 

4th. Have you acquainted yourself w4th the testimony of wit- 
nesses in this case, other than the claimants themselves, tending 
to show whether or not Dr. Morton was experimenting as to 
ether as an anaesthetic agent before he saw Dr. Jackson, and as 
to the extent of Dr. Jackson's knowledge of the anaesthetic pow- 
ers of ether ? 

(Objected to as immaterial as to what the witness has acquaint- 
ed himself with, as to the testimony. J. P. P.) 

Ans. I have not acquainted myself with any facts bearing upon 
the question, beyond what I have already stated. I have always 
avoided taking a part in the controvers}^, so far as I was allowed 
to do so, and never have read any of the documents on the sub- 
ject, to my reccollection. 

5th. If you have treated Dr. Jackson as the person who first 
suggested the use of ether to Dr. Morton, have you or not been 
governed by faith in his own statements ? 

; Ans. I have been governed by the general statement which he 
made to me at first, and of which I have given an account. 



317 

6th. Have you any other means of knowing what Dr. Jackson 
did in fact suggest to Dr. Morton, on what, or what his knowledge 
was at the time, than from Dr. Jackson's statements ? 

Ans. No other. 

7th. Did the patients at the hospital suffer from asphyxia while 
you used the inhalers ? 

Ans. Some of the earlier patients at the hospital were asphyx- 
iated to a degree that was alarming ; and I think under these in- 
halers, but am not certain. 

8th. Did you use the oxygen gas that Dr. Jackson brought? 

Ans. We had no occasion to at the time they were brought. 
We frequently wished for them afterwards, and would have ap- 
plied them had they been present. 

9th. Did Dr. Jackson, at the interview at your house, claim any- 
thing more than you have already stated ? 

Ans. I can't recollect anything more. 

10th. If you had simply seen a tooth extracted without an ap- 
pearance of pain, should you have inferred with certainty that 
entire insensibility, as well as unconciousness, would be produced 
sufficient ? 

Ans. I think I should. 

11th. Do you mean to cover, by the 31st cross-interrogatory, 
instances prior to his first conversation with you ? 

Ans. I know of no cases prior to the one which was the sub- 
ject of our conversation here. I don't mean to apply it to any 
cases before that time, either one way or the other. 

12th. Do you mean to apply your answer to the 32d cross- 
interrogatory to times prior to the conversation at your house ? 

Ans. I have no knowledge of anything on the subject prior to 
the conversation alluded to. 

13th. Will you annex a copy of the letter of Dr. Jackson to observe 
you, of November 23, 1847 ? this : Why 

Ans. I should not feel justified in doing it w^ithout the consent should Dr. 
of Dr. Jackson or his attorney. If they consent, I have no objec- counsel af- 
tion. ter inspect- 

JOHN C. WARREN. ingliislet. 

ters, refuse 

The letter referred to in the last answer of this deponent was to be pro- 
handed to Dr. Jackson's counsel, who, after consultation with Dr. duced ? 
Jackson, stated that Dr. Jackson was unwilling to have it an- ^^uld 1?^ 
nexed, because he says that the first four lines of the letter have Wanen re- 
been so marked out that they cannot be read ; and because he is quire his 
unwilling to have one of his letters to Dr. Warren produced ^°°l^°* *2 
without the production of all his letters to Dr. Warren upon that If it doe« 
subject. not contain 

J. P. PUTNAM. evidence 
against 
him? 



318 



Paek Street, October 28. 
Dear Sir : I had the pleasure to call on you to day to con- 
verse on the subject of the gas. I am very anxious to find a 
mode of mitigating the sufferings of patients under surgical ope- 
rations. If you can, without impropriety, give me a practical 
account of the apparatus and the substance employed, or purchase 
for the hospital this apparatus, it v/ould be a real blessing to hu- 
manity, and a favor to your friend and servant, 

J. C. WARREN. 

The foregoing is a copy of the letter referred to by the depo- 
nent, John C. Warren, in his answer to the 7th cross-interroga- 
tory, as annexed and marked A. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 



B. 

June 10, 1847. 
Dear Sir : A friend of mine, from London, informs me that a 
large sum of money might be obtained, on a combined applica- 
tion of Drs. Jackson and Morton ; but by either, separately. 
I could give, at this moment, essential aid to such an application. 
If Dr. Jackson agrees, I am willing to make the proposal to Dr. 
Morton, and remain your friend and servant, 

J. C. WARREN. 

The foregoing is the copy of the letter referred to by the said 
deponent, in his ansv/er to 28th cross-interrogatory, as annexed 
and marked B. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 



C. 

Boston, Odoher 21, 1848. 
Dear Sir : In reply to your note of this morning respecting 
my subscription of ten dollars, for the benefit of Dr. Morton, I 
beg leave to refer you to the captions of the subscription paper ; 
by which you will perceive that my subscription, like the others, 
was intended to relieve Dr. Morton from pecuniary embarrass- 
ment, and not for any other purpose, so far as I recollect. 
I remain yours, with respect, 

J. C. WARREN. 
Dr. C. T. Jackson. 



319 

The foregoing is the copy of the letter referred to by the said 
deponent, in his answer to 58d cross-interrogatory, as annexed 
and marked C. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, ) 
Suffolk county, ] 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the de- 
position in perpetuam of John C. Warren, taken before us, upon 
the petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonw^ealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM. 
Two Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law, 
Boston, December 16, 1852. 



Deposition of Dr. Bigelow, a distinguished surgeon and scieu" 

tific man. 

I, Henry J. Bigelow, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, physician, of lawful age, being 
first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by 
R. H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. William T. G. Morton. 

1st. Are you, and how long have you been, a surgeon of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital ? 

Ans. I am, and have been for six or seven years. 

2d. At what college were you educated ? Where did you 
study your profession? 

Ans. I was educated at Harvard University, and studied my 
profession in Boston and in Europe. 

3d. Of what scientific societies are you a member? 

Aris. Of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; the 
Boston Society for Medical Improvement ; an honorary member 
of the Anatomical Society of Paris ; corresponding member of the 
Biological Society of Paris, and some others. 

4th. Are you, and how long have you been, a professor in the 
Medical College of Harvard University ? 

Ans. I am professor of Surgery in the Massachusetts Medical 
College, and have been for the past four years. 

5th. How long, and how intimately, have you known Dr. Chas. 
T. Jackson? How as to Dr. Morton? 

Ans. I have known Dr. Jackson ten or more years, not inti* , 

mately. I have known Dr. Morton since the ether discovery — relaion^to 
about six years — not intimately. the parties 



320 

6th. Please to state, in order, your first laiowledge of the ether 
discovery, and the experiments thereupon. 

Ans. I think my first knowledge of the ether discovery was at 
the first operation at the hospital. The ether was then adminis- 
tered by Dr. Morton. The next day there was another operation 
at the hospital, where the ether was administered by Dr. Morton. 
At the time of the first experiment, Dr. Morton arrived rather 
late. Dr. Warren was to operate upon a mass of veins about the 
ramus of the jaw, or about the jaw-bone. As I remember them, 
they were of the size of a large horse-chestnut. During the ope- 
■^.""^^P®" ration, which should not be considered a very painful one, the 
patient stirred and groaned, as in a more than half unconscious 
state. When he came to, he said he had felt as if he had been 
scratched with a hoe. The new method had plainly stupefied 
him. This was also the general impression among those who 
witnessed the operation. I was attending to the experiment, 
and do not remember what remarks v/ere made. The next day a 
Second fatty tumor was removed by Dr. Hayward from the shoulder and 

operation, arm of a woman. The cut was a long one. Dr. Morton had ad- 
ministered to her his preparation, and she was sound asleep. I 
was herti perfectly satisfied that there was no deception ; that 
there was no imagination at work ; but that something had set 
the woman asleep, so that she did not feel the pain. I do not re- 
member what expressions the woman afterwards used to describe 
her feelings, but this vras the conviction which I retained. The 
Consecu- jiext experiments I saw, -were at Dr. Morton's rooms, I believe. 

meiS^^^'^ became much interested in this matter, and induced Dr. Gould to 
obtain from Dr. Morton permission to examine the condition of pa- 
tients who vv^ere etherized at Dr. Morton's rooms. I was present 
at a number of these consecutive experiments, and made a detailed 
record of the phenomena presented by patients who had teeth 
extracted. Not far from this time, also, occurred an operation 
upon a patient of Dr. Dix. When the ether w^as administered by 
a person said to be in the employ of Dr. Morton, and to such an 
extent that the patient was not only insensible during about a half 
an hour, but came near dying, and I think -would have done so, 
had I not stopped the administration of ether, when I found the 
pulse, which I happened to be holding, very small. Active meas- 
ures were taken for the resuscitation of the patient, and, after 
awhile, the pulse came up. These experiments at Dr. Morton's 
rooms, and upon Dr. Dix's patient, were all before the amputation 
Record ^^ ^j^g hospital. I will annex a copy of the record which I made 
of the experiments at Dr. Morton's rooms, and make it a part of 
this my answer. 

(This copy is annexed, marked A, J. P. P.) 

I now come to the amputation of the seventh of November, 

iion Not! eighteen hundred and forty -six, performed by Dr. Hayward at the: 

Tih 1846. * Massachusetts General Hospital. The first operation, the report of 



321 

which would be calculated to carry with it to the scientific world 
at large, unequivocal conviction, however much those who were 
intimately cognizant of the preceding circumstances might have 
been convinced by them. I had heard that the amputation was 
to be performed ; that there had been some questions about ad- 
ministering the ether, and that, in connection with this, Dr. Morton 
had written to Dr. Warren to make a formal statement that ether 
was the agent employed by him. For, although most of us knew 
what this agent was, no formal announcement of it had been made. 
I learned from Dr. Morton and from Dr. Gould that the ether 
would probably not be administered in this case, and I made an 
arrangement with Dr. Morton to take him to the hospital just 
before the hour of the operation, telling him that I would do every 
thing in my power to induce the surgeons then in service there to 
"use the ether in that operation. I called for him in my chaise, 
and took him with his inhaler to the hospital. Leaving him in 
the small room adjoining the apothecary's shop, I sought an inter- 
view with the surgeons, whom I found decided not to use the ether, 
their objection being something connected with the professional eti- Profes- 
quette of this community. Such objections lay at that time against ^^^^^}- ©ti- 
both the patent right connected with the ether, and the conceal- ^^® ^* 
ment, in part, of its character. I returned to Dr. Morton, and 
told him that I should still urge its use, but, at the same time, 
told him not to be disappointed if I failed. I again returned to 
my colleagues, whom I found assembled in the operating theatre, 
and conversing chiefly with Dr. Hayward and Dr. Warren, men- 
tioned, among other things, that this was a question not of 
professional etiquette, but of humanity. In reply to the objection 
that the new agent was still secret, I remarked to Dr. Warren that 
I believed that Dr. Morton had furnished to him a letter announc- 
ing what this agent was. Dr. Warren then took from his pocket 
a letter which, if I remember right, he read in part to the class 
and to those standing near. This letter was then made a turning 
point in their decision, and the surgeons interested immediately in 
the patient now agreed that ether should be administered to her. 
I went down stairs, brought up Dr. Morton, and the patient was 
successfully etherized. In pursuance of the intention that this 
patient was to undergo the operation without ether, one hundred 
drops of laudanum had been administered to her about an hour be- 
fore. It is, perhaps, needless to add, that the patient exhibited no 
indication of pain during the incisions, unless, perhaps, a little 
muscular effort which she did not afterwards remember. After 
these earlier experiments, it so happened that, for a time, I ad- 
ministered the ether myself to most of the patients operated upon 
at the hospital. 

7th. As to the experiment at Dr. Morton's room, how did Dr. 
Morton conduct them as to skill, care and success? 

21 ^ 



322 

Dr. Mor- Ans. In a methodical, slraiffht-forward, routine manner, and 
If'^d.SnS successfully. 

tering the ith. Was Dr. Jackson present at any of these experiments at 
etfeer. the hospital which you have detailed ? 

ne/e?' p'rT ^^- ^^^ ^^ ^^^ knowledge. 

sent. 9th. Did you ever know of Dr. Jackson's administering ether 

(Note. It to any person, under a dental or surgical operation? 
does not j^^^^ -^^^ 

he has erer 10th. At the time of the first experiments at the hospital, did 
administer- you know or believe, or suspect that Dr. Jackson had any con- 
ed it in ajjgxion with the discovery or use of etherization? (Obiected to 
single case) ^^ r • - \ TT>-n 

No allusion as matter of opmion.) J. P. P. 

to him at Ans. No. 

the hospi- Hth. At the conference among the surgeons at the hospital, 
aid derived j^st before the first amputation under ether, which you have 
from his referred to, was any allusion made by any of the surgeons to 
name. Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. Not that I remember. 

12th. So far as your knowledge is concerned, were any of the 
experiments at the hospital performed at the request of Dr^ 
Jackson ? 
Ans. No. 

13th. Was it stated, or so far as you know, understood at the 
time by or among the surgeons, that the experiments were per- 
formed, or any of them at Dr. Jackson's request or instigation ? 
(Objected to as the witness's understanding. J. P. P.) 

Ans. Not to my know^ledge. 

14th. What is your experience as to the value of nitrous oxide 
as an anaesthetic agent ? 
Nitrous ^j^g^ Administered from a bag of about the size usually em- 
ployed for its administration under the name of exhiliratmg gas, 
I should think it altogether inadequate to produce either a certain 
insensibility, or one that was available for surgical purposes, ex- 
^-2?* ^^Pt by inducing asphyxia, which is dangerous, and which is no 
^^^^ part of proper aneesthesia. It is a gas and must be inhaled by 
some cavity which contains it. The difficulty in the way of suc- 
cess when nitrous oxide is inhaled from the usual bag, is, that the 
supply of oxygen which it contains is soon exhausted, while the 
bag becomes filled with the noxious inhalations of the lungs. In 
breathing ether, a fresh supply of vapor, well mixed with atmos- 
pheric air, is taken into the Irmgs at every breath, while what is 
breathed out of the lungs, escapes into the apartment as waste. 
To give nitrous oxide an equal chance of showing what it 
can do, a fresh supply should be breathed at each inspiration 
from a large receptacle ; and at each expiration this also should 
be thrown off as waste, instead of being breathed back into the 
bag as is usually dcaie. I performed this experiment once by 
means of valves attached to a tube connected with a very large 



metal gas-holder, but the cumbrous character of the arrangement, 
and some other circumstances, induced me then to abandon it. I 
shoujd add, that I removed a breast from the woman who was 
then under its influence, and without her knowledge, but that she 
exhibited indications of partial asphyxia, which resulted either 
from the gas, or from the size of the tube from which it was in- 
haled. The gas-holder in this case consisted of two upright 
cylinders, side by side, as I remember them, eighteen or twenty 
inches in diameter, and somewhat less than five feet high. 

15th. Is nitrous oxide used at the hospital or elsewhere in sur- 
gical cases, to your knowledge ? 

Ans. No. 

16th. From your experience and observation, what is its value 
as an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. Nothing great. I am not aware that it is ever used. <^^ 

17th. Why do you say this ? On what do you found your 
opinion ? 

Aus. An obvious an insuperable objection to it, is its bulk and 
the difficulty of its transportation. If it were compact, I do not ^^ 
know of any conclusive evidence that it is a universal and efficient ^^^ 
agent. 

18th. Is nitrous oxide ever, to your knowledge, used in obste- 
tric cases ? What is its value in such cases ? 

Ans. It is never nsed in such cases. I do not think that any 
body knows that it has any value in such cases. 

19th. Can it be kept long on hand, or must it be prepared 
specially in each case. 

Ans. I am not aware that it deteriorates by keeping. 

20th. Do you or not consider it an established fact in science 
that nitrous oxide will safely produce entire insensibility under «S^ 
surgical operatic^is ? 

Ans. I do not. 

21st. Please to state more fully the circumstances attending^ 
the first ether experiment at the hospital. " •t^i^ 

Ans. The operation, as I remember it, was for the removal or 
cure of a mass of tortuous veins, being in the neighborhood of the 
point where the facial vein crosses the ramus of the jaw, or a little 
anterior to this. The disease would be, by some surgeons, called 
varix, yet it is.not precisely that disease. The vems seeming to 
become locally and spontaneously enlarged and rolled together 
like a bundle of earth worms. The patient was etherized by an 
inhaler. 

22d. Do you usually ask a patient under etherization v^^hether 
he is now insensible to pain, or do you judge for yourself? 

Ans. I judge for myself. 

23d. In your experience, does unconsciousness usually or al- 
ways attend, precede, or follow insensibilitv, or how otherwise? 



324 

Ans. It usually attends it. A partial unconsciousness or intel- 
lectual bewilderment usually preceding it. 

24th. From your experience, what is your opinion as to the 
Compare patient^s possession of his intellectual faculties during: the effect 

son's pre- Ans. He generally loses them during an effect of ether adequate 
tence that to surgical purposes, and I will add that I should never begin a 
he was con- g^^gjj^j operation, which approached an average degree of seve- 
re had be- I'ity, until the patient was intellectually, as well as physically un- 
come in- conscious. 

^^Tth^^tVi 2oth. Do you or not know of any case in which a party suffi- 
insensibili- ciently under the effect of ether to be operated upon, had the fair 
ty was of a possession of his faculties, so as to observe his own sensations ? 

peculiar j^r^s. I don't know of any such case, nor do I know of any case 

kind. See ■, ... • -Yi . .i - r • i 

down to'^'^'^^^^ ^ patient was insensible to the pain ot an average surgical 

29th, and operation, while his intellectual faculties were uftimpaired at the 
Dr. Jack- time. 

menttoDr' 26th. Suppose a person should privately inhale ether to the 
Gay. See extent of unconsciousness, could he judge or infer with any and 
also Dr. what certainty, from such observation as he could give to his own 
p 359 sensations, at any stage before or after unconsciousness, that he 
would be insensible under a surgical operation ? 

Ans. I do not see how he could make such inference with a 
certainty which would have any sort of value in the eyes of men 
of science, under the circumstances described, or, in fact, until the 
experiment had been tried, unless, indeed, he should perform some 
surgical operation upon himself. 

27th. At what stage of the experiment could he perform suci 
an operation upon himself ? 

Ans. I can't say. 

2Sth. Do you or not consider it possible for a person to prove 
total insensibility under etherization by an experiment on himself? 
If not, why not ? 

x4ns. I do not consider it possible, because physical insensibility 
to pain is, under such circumstances, usually accompanied by a 
state of the intellect which impairs the powers both of observation 
and reasoning, and also because, to the best of my present knowl- 
edge, insensibility to the pnin of a wound large enough or severe 
enough to settle this question in a conclusive way, is always at- 
tended with great intellectual bewilderment or stupidit)'-, such as 
would render correct observation or inference impossible. 

29th. Do you or not consider it possible to infer insensibility to 
a surgical operation by inductions from any known properties of 
ether short of such an actual experiment ? 

Ans. An inference like that described would have no value with 
scientific men. 

30th. Do you know of any cases where asphyxia was produced 



325 

in the hospital ? Hoav before, and how since, inhalers were aban- 
doned ? 

Ans. Not complete asphyxia. Partial asph3^xia, varying in 
degree, is not uncommon. Inhalers were abandoned not many 
months after the first experiment, and a sponge used in their stead. 
I am unaWe to say that there was more asphyxia before inhalers 
were abandoned than there is now. 

31st. Was there any period at which asphyxia at once ceased ? 

Ans. No. 

32d. Has the asphyxia which has occurred any, and what con- 
nexion with the use of valves in the apparatus, or of inhalers in 
any form ? 

Ans. If a valve should get stiff, and fail to do its duty, so as to 
shut out air, it would then, and I dare say it has, been the cause 
of producing partial asphyxia. An inhaler might be made with 
improper or inefScient valves. The apertures in these valves 
might be smaller than the aperture in the larynx. In the inhalers 
used at the hospital, which, as far as I know, were made upon the 
same model, the valves were properly arranged, and their aper- 
tures were large enough to prevent any asphyxia, as far as they 
were concerned. The experiments have never been made at the 
hospital, except with inhalers with ample provision made for the 
introduction of atmospheric air ; [but in France the eariy experi- 
ments were made with shut cavities or close bags, into and out of 
which the patients w^ere made to breathe. Asphyxia was then 
very common for want of pure air.] 

(Objection to the part in brackets : objected to as hearsay.) 

J. P. P. 

33d. Please read the following statement by Dr. C. T. Jackson. 
" The cause of asphyxia, so commonly produced in the early ad- 
ministration of ether at the Massachusetts General Hospital, I 
traced directly to^the use of those valved inhalers. In the weak- 
ened state of respiratory action, under anaesthetic agents, the valves 
are not raised in attempts to breathe, and the patient is drowned 
by the pure ether or chloroform vapor. On the removal of the 
valve by my directions, asphyxia at once ceased to occur at the 
hospital, and I had no occasion to employ the oxygen gas to re- 
vive the patients, as I was requested to do by one of the eminent 
surgeons of that institution, for no asphyxia happened after my 
advice was followed to throw aside the inhalers and use a sponge." 
What observations have you to make thereupon ? 

Ans. I should say first, that I don't think there was more as- 
phyxia in the early administration of ether than there is now, and 
if so, it would be unnecessary to look for its existence to the 
valved inhalers. As to the second period to the above para- 
graph, I should say that, if respiration is too weak to raise the 
valves, the patient would get neither air nor ether, and conse- 
quently could not be drowned by the vapor of the latter: or, if 



326 

the atmospheric valve were closed alone, I think the ,ether would 
hardly evaporate fast enough from the then close cavity to fill the 
lungs. There was no period at which asphyxia at once ceased 
to occur at the hospital. I think this alleged asphyxia had little 
or no connexion with any valves. I don't know that any valves 
were suppressed, nor that Dr. Jackson suppressed them. The 
degree of asphyxia which was then, and is still, common enough, 
^S^ was then dependent upon the same causes which sometimes pro- 
duce it now, and is not very important, except as showing that 
the patient wants more air. When Dr. Jackson brought oxygen 
gas to the hospital, it was not used, nor has it been, to my know- 
SJS^ ledge, anywhere since used in this connexion. A good deal of 
asphyxia may be produced by keeping a sponge well filled with 
ether close to the patient's face. This often happens, but I think 
it is more commonly attributable to the patient's refusing to 
breathe, or to a spasm about the glottis, or fauces, which not un- 
frequently happens, together with a forcible closure of the lips, 
I do not know who requested Dr. Jackson to employ oxygen gas, 
as stated by him, or that any one requested him to do so. I know 
of no advice given by Dr. Jackson with respect to throwing aside 
inhalers and using a sponge. 

34th. Did Dr. Jackson ever, to yonr knowledge, directly or in- 
directly, superintend or give directions concerning, or make him- 
self in any way responsible for inhalation of ether at the hospital ? 

Ans. No. 

3oth. Excepting in the instance of Dr. Jackson's bringing oxy- 
gen to the hospital, did he, to your knowledge, do any act con- 
^^:s necting himself with the experiments there made? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 

36th. When was it that he brought the oxygen there ? 

Ans. I believe it was the 2d of January, 1847. 

37th. What, in your judgment, is the gist of the discovery con- 
cerning the anaesthetic effects of ether ? 

Ans. The discovery that ether vapor is capable, when inhaled, 
of producing complete insensibility to the most excruciating pain 
of surgical operations, with perfect certainty, and with safety to 
the patient. 

38th. Before this discovery, had or not the idea been prevalent 
among scientific men, that some effects more or less valuable in 
the way of unconsciousness or insensibility mi^ht be produced to 
a greater or less degree, with more or less certainty, by the use 
of gases or vapors ? 

Ans. The idea had prevailed. 

39th. Was it or not known that stupefaction, and more or less 
unconsciousness or insensibility, was produced by liquors or drugs, 
under the effects of which some operations could be performed ? 

Ans. It was. A man dead drunk may have his leg amputated 
without feeling it, and recover perfectly. 



327 

40th. Was it or not known that ether was an antidote to chlo- 
rine gas ? 

Ans. Such a statement will be found, I believe, in '^Pereira's 
Materia Medica," a work of high reputation. 

41st. Did any change take place in surgical operations, to your 
knowledge, in consequence of any experiments in nitrous oxide 
gas, and before the experiments in ether, in October, 1846 ? 

Ans. No. 

42d. Independent of, and before an actual experiment by a sur- 
gical or dental operation, or with some instrument cutting the 
skin, should you, in the state of science then, consider a suggestion 
that ether inhaled might produce insensibility to be a discovery ? 

Ans. No. 

4od. Did any controversy arise on the first introduction o^J^*J?*^*** 
etherization ? What was done for or against it ? What part did conduct 
Dr. Morton, and to what extent ? with Jack- 

Ans. There was a very great difference of opinion — first, as re- 3<^^'^- 
gards its safety. Many people maintained that it was dangerous. 
Some eminent surgeons have pertenaciously, and in the most sur- 
prising manner, adhered to this opinion to the present day, object- 
ing to its use. At an early period, certain religious grounds were 
urged against its adoption. Dr. Morton, as far as I know, uni- 
formly and and perseveringly urged it upon the medical profession 
and upon the world. 

44th. What part did Dr. Jackson take during this doubtful 
and controverted state of the discovery, as you have stated ? 

Ans. I do not know. 

45th. Do you know of any public part he took in its favor ^^^m 
during the first two or three months ? 

Ans. No, I remember none. 

Cros Interrogatories by A. Jackson, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. Will you please state what, before September, 1846, was 
generally known, accepted and believe in the medical profession 
as to the medical properties, effects and uses of sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. Administered internally, it was supposed to possess an 
anti-spasmodic and calming effect. Breathed in a weak dose, it 
was supposed to allay the severity of some symptoms. It was 
stated by Pereira, in his Materia Medica, edition 1839, Part I, 
that " the vapor of ether is inhaled in spasmodic asthma, chronic 
catarrh and dyspepsia, hooping cough, and to relieve the effects 
caused by the accidental inhalation of chlorine gas," p. 211. 
Farther statements of Pereira upon this point I will furnish and 
annex. 

(A copy of this statement is annexed by me marked B. J. P. P.) 

Breathed in a larger dose, it was known to produce an 
exhilarating effect, like that produced by nitrous oxide. In a 



328 

still larger dose, it was known to have produced, in a few caseSy 
dangerous symptoms and death. The experiments of Sir Benjamin 
Erodie, who found that it put guinea pigs to sleep and then killed 
them, led him to doubt its safety. A medical gentleman informed 
me that he once breathed it for exhilarating purposes, and became 
insensible. My impression is, that it would not be difficult to find 
other similar cases. 

2d. Will you please state when you yourself first knew or saw 
the statement in Pereira ? 

Ans. Subsequently to the discovery of ether ; the precise period 
I cannot say. I should say it was certainly some weeks after. 

3d. Will you please state at what time the gentleman referred 
to in answ^er to 1st cross interrogatory, spoke with you of breath- 
ing and becoming insensible ? 

Ans. Subsequently to the discovery of ether, aiid not a great 
while after. I mean the discovery of ether inhalation. 

4th. Before September, 1846, whether or not, if any, you had 
given much attention to the subject of preventing or mitigating 
pain in surgical operations ? 

Ans. Every surgeon is desirous of giving his patient as little 
pain as possible. Farther than this, I had given no special atten- 
tion to the subject. 

0th. You state in answer to 6th interrogatory that your first 
knowledge of the ether discovery was at the first operation at the 
hospital : Had you not previously known or heard of the dis- 
covery ? 

Ans. I believe not. 

6th. Had you not previously witnessed any painless operations 
at Dr. Morton's office, under the influence of ether? 

Ans. No. 

7th. When did you first learn that the agent employed by Dr» 
Morton was nothing but pure sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. In the course of a few days after the first experiments at 
the hospital, and alter I had made, in the interval, quite a number 
of experiments with various agents to discover what he used. In 
fact, I had time to send to Philadelphia, and to procure there a 
quantity of oil of Avine, with which I experimented before I knew 
that ether alone was employed. I can't assign the precise time 
when this was. I should say a week after the first experiment at 
the hospital. 

8th. Will you please state what, and how many experiments, 
and with what agents your experiments referred to in answer to 
7th cross interrogatory were made, and the success or resuJts of 
them ? 

Ans. Sulphuric ether, oil of wine, chloric ether, alcohol, cold 
and warm, I remember. On several different days, administering 
these preparations by inhalation to Mr. Dalton, then house sur- 
geon at the hospital and others, and using a two-necked glas 



329 

bottle, to one orifice of which was attached a large tin tube pro- 
vided with valves of leather. The length and material of this 
tube condensed the vapor, and caused, I think, the failure of the 
experiment when sulphuric ether was employed. The patient 
was tranquilized and lost inclination to speak or move in some of 
the experiments ; in others he became excited. 

9th. Did you conduct these experiments alone, or with whose 
aid, if the aid of any one, or in connexion with whom, if any 



one 



Ans. I conducted them alone. 

10th. Whether or not Dr. Gay had any connexion with these 
experiments you made? 

Ans. Not that I remember. I knew Dr. Gay well, and might 
have conversed with him upon the subject. He certainly had 
nothing to do with conducting the experiments. 

11th. What, at the first experiments at the hospital was the 
agent inhaled called, or how spoken of? 

Ans. A compound, I think. 

12th. You spoke in answer to 6th interrogatory, of inducing 
Dr. Gould to obtain from Dr. Morton permission to examine the 
condition of patients who were etherized at his rooms; — w^hy did 
you go to Dr. Gould? why induce him? 

Ans. Because I did not know Dr. Morton, and I did know Dr. 
Gould. I also knew him to have relations with Dr. Morton. 

13th. What were these relations last referred to? 

Ans. My impression is, that Dr. Morton boarded at Dr. Gould's 
house ; also, that they had communicated with each other in re- 
lation to ether, and that the inhaler used by Dr. Morton was 
contrived in part by Dr. Gould. 

14th. Can you state how long Dr. Morton had, at the time you 
inquired of Dr. Gould, boarded at Dr. Gould's, or about how 
long? 

Ans. No. 

15th, What was the number of the experiments you witnessed 
in Dr. Morton's rooms, as referred to in answer to 6th interroga- 
tory? 

Ans. At least four, possibly more. 

16th. How many have you recorded, or made minutes of? 

Ans. The four to which 1 allude. 

17th. Please state fully your position in respect to the ether 
discovery ; — what you have written, published, or done, respect- > 

ing it? 

Ans. I took an early and active interest in it, and did what I 
could to promote its use. I wrote a paper upon the subject, <:^^ 
which happened to be the first detailed statement ©f the dis- 
covery. This was published in the Boston Medical and Surgical 
Journal, November 18th, 1846, having been previously read in 
part before the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, on the 



330 

3d of said November, and before the Boston Society of Medical 
Improvement on the 9th of said November. This paper contained 
an account of the new facts and the effects of ether inhalation, 
and connected with the discovery the names of Dr. Charles T. 
Jackson and of Dr. Morton, in stating that they appeared in the 
patent. The announcement of so startling a discovery incurred 
^^» some ridicule in the journals of the day. The mention of the 
patent was a cause of remarks in print, to which, on one occa- 
sion, I replied in the same journal soon after, under date of 



I continued to do what little I was able to promote 
the use of ether, and have always done so. I was called upon in 
1847, by the surgical committee of the American Medical Asso- 
ciation, to furnish an account of the method of administration, 
and the physiological effects of ancesthetic- agents, and did so, in 
an article afterward published in the transactions of that body. 
Soon after the discovery of ether inhalation, it was evident that 
the two parties, w^hose names appeared in the patent, entertained 
difference of opinion with regard to their respective claims to the 
discovery. In 1848, I published in the Boston Medical and Sur- 

m^> gical Journal, an article, in which I endeavored to discuss impar- 
tially the abstract question of discovery, and of claims to discovery, 
citing various precedents. The part of the article devoted to thi^ 
subject occupies about a dozen pages, and the application of its 
conclusions to the ether discovery is confined to a single con- 
cluding page. The first part of this article contained, also, some 
general account of the history and progress of ether inhalation. 
Having been led to a conclusion, based in a great measure upon 
precedent, and also upon a consideration of the abstract question, 
that Dr. Morton was in this case the discoverer, I subsequently 

>g^2?:» addressed a short note to Mr. Winthrop, at Washington, enume- 
rating the principal facts in evidence upon the subject of this 
discovery. Again, at a still later date, having received from Dr. 
Morton a copy of some statements furnished by Dr. Charles T. 
Jackson to the chairman of a committee of Congress, at Wash- 
ington, which contained an extract from a letter addressed by 
him to Baron Humboldt, and which I deemed incorrect, I replied 
to them in a letter, addressed to the Hon. George T. Davis, dated 
February 5th, 1852, and printed in the report of the committee 
of the 32d Congress, 1st session, page 67. 

18th. Whether or not, you wrote letters, or forwarded pam- 
phlets to Europe, which related to the ether discovery ? 

Ans. The first article alluded to was sent either by myself or 
Dr. Jacob Bigelow, to Dr. Boott, of London, and was widely re- 

^,^2^ published in whole or in part. At a subsequent time, while 

'^^^' travelling in Europe, I gave to my medical friends some copies of 
the other articles alluded to. I don't remember to have written 
a letter to Europe on the subject. 



331 

19th. Whether any of the papers referred to bj you in answer 
to the 17th cross interrogatory, were printed in a separate pam- 
phlet, without the other contents of the November number of the 
Boston Medical and Surgical Journal? If any, what? 

Ans. The paper alluded to as a discussion of the question of 
discovery was so bound up. That is the only one. 

20th. Whether many copies of the article referred to in answo- 
to the 18th cross interrogatory were sent to Europe? 

Ans. First and last, a dozen or more, as I remember, including 
those which I gave to my friends as above-mentioned. Among 
them, a few of them were distributed in Paris by myself; one or 
two, perhaps, by others; I do not think more. 

21st. How soon after the appearance in print of the article 
published November 18, and referred to in answer to 18th cross 
interrogatory, were numbers sent to England ? About how 
many ? and were any then sent to France ? 

Ans. I cannot say how soon after they were sent to England ; 
I know of but one which was sent. None were sent to France 
by myself or any one that I know" of. My impression is, that 
Dr. Fisher sent one to his nephew. 

22d. Whether or not the receipt of the article of November 
18 in England was the first of the announcement of the ether 
discovery there ? 

Ans. I believe it w^as. 

23d. Was that, or information from that article, the first an- 
nouncement of it in France ? 

Ans. Here again I give my impression that it introduced the 
subject to the notice of Velpeau through Dr. Fisher, jr. Velpeau 
refused to entertain the subject, which escaped notice at that 
time, and until subsequently revived. 

24th. Can you state in what way it was in France subse- 
quently revived ? 

Ans. I think by news from England of surgical operations 
there. 

25th. Were these surgical operations in England based upon 
the intelligence the publication above referred to of November 
18, carried to England ? 

Ans. I think they were, for the following reason : Experi- 
ments were tried immediately upon its reception there — the first 
by a dentist to whom Dr. Boott communicated the information. 
Surgical operations followed this experiment, and Dr. Boott was 
kind enough to send to me notes which he had received from the 
leading physicians and surgeons — several of them in reply to his 
communication to them detailing the more tr less successful re- 
sults of their experiments, and their general impression upon the 
subject. Among them, I think, are those of Listen, Brodie, 
Clark, Bell, Chambers, and others. With regard to the dates 
at which this information was conveyed from place to place at 



-.;S«.i 



332 

that time, I have not attached any great importance to it, and 
am therefore now unable to speak with accuracy. 

26th. Whether or not the article of November 18, 1846, was 
translated into French, and so a report of the new discovery first 
reached there ? 

Ans. Never, to my knowledge. 

27th. Suppose a new and important scientific discovery, which 
would have great importance in surgical operations, to be made 
public in England, and published there in the journals, how soon 
w^ould it, with the means ol frequent transit, get to Paris ? 

Ans. In the daily prints it would be republished in the course 
of two or three days : in the scientific journals, (some of them,) 
within the week probably. 

28th. Can you state whose experiments of the French sur- 
geons and scientific gentlemen you are familiar with, as in 
answer to 25th cross interrogatory you have spoken of those 
of the Englitsh surgeons ? 

Ans. I cannot state. 

29th. What part or share, if any, had you in the preparation, 
or by way of suggestion and consultation, of the Massachusetts 
General Hospital report of 1848 ? 

Ans. None, that I remember ; nof do I think that I knew 
anything about it until it was published. 

30tb. In your early acquaintance with Dr. Morten, did his 
knowledge about scientific matters — his knowledge or ignorance 
of the various kinds of ether — come under your observation ? 

Ans. I think he had not much acquaintance with scientific 
matters ; and of his knowledge of ether, other than sulphuric 
ether, I know nothing. I don't know how mush he knew of 
sulphuric ether besides the fact that its inhalation would produce 
insensibility to the pain of surgical operatiens. 

31st. Whether or not you saw the advertisements of Dr. Mor- 
ton in the newspapers in the fall of 1846, and the winter and 
spring ensuing ? 

Ans. I don't remember any such advertisements, though I 
should have been very likely to see them if there were such. 
My impression is of something like a circular rather than an 
advertisement ; but of this I have no accurate remembrance. 

o2d. Whether or not the inhalers used at the Massachusetts 
General Hospital, as in answer to 30th interrogatory stated, had 
valves attached to them by springs? 

Ans. I remember no springs connected with the valves, which, 
I think, were hinged with leather, except that one valve out of 
the three had in some way attached to it, I believe, a slender 
spiral spring. 

33d. Whether or not the leather hinges operated in the man- 
ner of springs, to keep the valves shut ? 



333 

Alls. They miglit, in part, have done so, yet the valves main- 
tained their place, I think, chiefly by their own weight, and 
would have fallen open had the instrument been turned upside 
down. 

34th. Will you please describe the inhalers used, as to the 
different valves — as to the use of each valve. 

Ans. The inhaler consisted, as I remember it, of a glass globe, 
containing a sponge, and provided with two orifices. One of 
these was intended to open into the air, which would then tra- 
verse the globe, carry with it ether vapor, and enter the lungs 
through the second orifice. Each of these orifices was provided 
with a valvular contrivance. The former — that communicating 
with the air — was attached to a sort of stopper, which could be 
taken in or out at pleasure, and served chiefly to prevent the 
escape of ether vapor into the apartment when the apparatus 
was not in use. The other valvular contrivance, attached to 
the mouth-piece, was of more importance. The air passing 
from the globe into the lungs raised a valve. Instead, however, 
of being returned or blown again into the globe, its progress was 
rather impeded by the closure of this valve, while a side valve 
in the tube of the m®uth-piece now opened and diverted the air 
of expiration into the apartment. The object of this latter 
double valve was simply to prevent the same volume of vapor 
from being twice inspired. 

35th. Which valve had the spiral spring attached to it, as stated 
in answer to 32d cross-interogatory ? 

Ans. The atmospheric, or that first described. 

36th. Can jou give the date, the time when the use of inhaler 
was abandoned at the hospital ? 

Ans. No, I cannot ; nor do I remember that there was any 
sudden abandonment of them. They fell into disuse. 

37th. At about what time did they begin to fail into disuse ? 

Ans. I am unable to say. I should think a good many weeks, 
perha]>s some months, alter the discovery q>[ ether inhalation. 

38th. In answer to 11th cross-interogatory you have stated that 
the ether was spoken of as a compound ; w^as it, early in its in- 
troduction, called a gas? 

Ans. That I can^t say. 

39th. Did not Dr. Morton so call it a gas? 

Ans. That I don't know. 

40th. Early in its administration, was there mingled with it 
some aromatic substance . 
^ Ans. I do not know that there was. I got the notion at the 
time that something like Cascarilla bark was burned upon the 
stone of the operating theatre, and that the odor, which was very 
perceptible, was produced in that way. 

41st. Whether or not, the professional etiquette referred to in 
answer to 6th interrogatory, is embraced in a law of the Massa- 



334 

chusetts Medical Sociiety, forbidding any member to use secret 
remedies ? 

Ans. Chiefly so. It also applies to the question of patent. 

42d. Is it not with your observation that insensibility to pain 
precedes and follows the unconscious state induced by the inhala- 
tion of ether? 

Ans. If by unconscious state is meant a profound and utter 
somnolency, I should say, that such a state of insensibility to 
pain as that described, was not uncommon while the patient is re- 
covering from such stupor, after a heavy dose of ether, and is yet 
in a half unconscious and bewildered state. The rule is, that sen- 
16S* sibility returns with consciousness and about in proportion to it. 

43d. Is it not of very frequent occurrence, m dental operations, 
to render the patient iHsensible to pain, and yet not unconscious 
under influence of ether ? 

Ans. I should not think it was. The faculties are generally 
bewildered as insensibility approaches. 

44th. Has it not frequently happened that, in surgical opera- 
tions, under the influence of ether, patients preserve their conscious- 
ness while they are insensible to pain ? 
Ig^^ Ans. It very rarely, if ever occurs, if by consciousness is 
meant the ability to observe and reason correctly. 

45th. Do not persons who have been operated upon suflfer more 
or less pain, after the eflject of the ether has passed away ? 

Ans. Yes. 

i^tha. Hais it not frequently happened that patients on whom 
operations have been performed under the influence of etherial 
inhalation, on recovering the possession of their faculties, their 
consciousness suffer no pain, and are ignorant that an operation 
has been performed ? 

Ans. That is partially true, yet the patient, if the operation 
has been one of average severity, soon come to a sense of pain as 
his faculties become clear. 

46th6. Is there not a period of time, after unconsciousness has 
gone, when insensibility to pain continues after an operation in 
surgery or dentistry? 

Ans. I think that the period of time, after complete unconscious- 
ness has gone, and during which there is more or less insensibility 
to pain, is not characterized by a clear mind. Patients do not 
then know where they have been, or why they have been dream- 
ing, or where they are. They are often exhilarated or lacrymose, 
but still they may answer questions with tolerable propriety. 

47th. Have you ever inhaled ether yourself, so as to produce 
unconsciousness ? 

Ans. Yes, not unfrequently. 

48th. Have you known of no cases where a patient, imder the 
influence of ether, had possession of his intellectual faculties? 



335 

Ans. Of my own knowledge, no case where the mental facul- 
ties were unimpared, where ether has been given in what may be 
called a surgical dose ; that is, an amount adquate for average 
surgical purposes. Cases which approach nearer to the circum- 
stances alluded to in the question, and where the faculties, although 
their mechanism was deranged, were less impared than by a sur- 
gical dose of ether; at any rate, one such case I have alluded to 
in the first article published by myself on this subject. 

49th. Have you known of no case where ether enough had been 
given, (not perhaps, what would be called a surgical dose,) to 
produce unconsciousness, wheie the intellectual faculties were 
sound and clear, after consciousness returned, and while insensi- 
bility to pain continued ? 

Ans. I remember no such case. 

50th. Have you known or seen reports oi such cases in medi- 
cal or other journals? 

Ans. I have seen or heard, and cited an allusion to such a case. 
Of its authenticity I cannot speak. From my own knowledge and 
experience, 1 cannot but doubt its authenticity. I alluded to a 
story of a man who criticised the amputation of his own leg ; I do 
not know from what source it emanated. 

51st. Do you remember a report of an early case of an opera- 
tion by Professor Miller, of Edinburgh, on one **' Nanny," (a 
laborer,) in whom there was a compound fracture of his leg, 
who, throughout an operation most painful under the circumstances, 
was wide awake and talking, and yet entirely insensible to pain — 
an operation that lasted some ten minutes ? 

Ans. I have no distinct recollection of it. It is certainly con- 
trary to the mass of surgical experience. 

52d. Did you know that Bouisson, in his work on etherization, 
states " that the integrity of the intelligence is preserved, while 
" the sensibility is paralized," in some cases ? 

Ans. No. 

53d. Are you aware that Malgaigne cites a case of a patient 
who was so master of his ideas, and so entirely self-possessed, and 
unconscious only to pain, that he encouraged the surgeon by voice 
and gesture to pursue his operation ? 

Ans. I do not know^ the case. Similar examples are not want- 
ing where patients have not been etherized. Again, such conduct 
would be no proof that the man w^as master of his ideas. 

54th. Have you not read of cases where the patients preserved 
their intelligence and were yet insensible to pain — such cases 
where the patient remarked on the performance in its progress ? 

Ans. I cannot say where, though I must have received the 
idea which I have previously alluded to from some source. 

55th. Suppose a person, under the influence of ether by inhala- 
tion to perceive and observe in himself and entire loss of all sensa- 
tion in all parts of his own body, and consequently to seem to himsei 



336 

to be supported by nothing, could he not infer in such state that 
the nerves of sensation were paralized ? 

Ans. He could only infer that the nerves of sensation were para- 
lized to a degree that made him seem to himrelf to be supported 
by nothing. 

56th. If the nerves of sensation of a patient are paralized, could 
a surgical operation be performed without any sense of pain? 

Ans. If they are completely paralized. 

57th. What, in your opinion, is the essential element in a dis- 
covery in the inductive science ? 

Ans. If there be any one element far more im})ortant than the 
rest, it seems to me to be conclusive proof of the asserted fact. 

58th. Who, in your opinion, discovered the composition of 
water ; — Priestly, who performed the experiments, or Watt, who 
inferred the composition of water from Priestly's experiments ? 

Ans. I could not say, without looking into the subject, with 
reference to that point. 

59th. Whether or not you have stated, and whether or not you 
now hold to this opinion, that Dr. Morton's experiments, no matter 
who suggested them to him, made him the discoverer of etheriza- 
tion ? 

Ans. That is my opinion, which is strengthened by oonsidera- 
tion of the character of the suggestion said to have been made to 
him, which was not of a proved fact, but of an unproved supposi- 
tion ; and also strenghthened by the subsequent evidence which 
shows that Morton did not need even that suggestion, such as it 
was. I refer to the evidence of Metcalf ond Wightman. 

60th. Did any medical authorities, anterior to September 30th, 
1846, teach that the inhalation of sulphuric ether could be attend- 
ed with safety to such an extent as to produce unconsciousness ? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 

61st. Are you aware that any one before Dr. C. T. Jackson 
^^^ suggested the use of sulphuric ether by inhalation, to pi event pain 
in surgical operations, if he did make such suggestion ? 

Ans. A suggestion varies in the degree of its suggestive power. 
I think Morton got a suggestion from some source upon this point, 
in July. I have a strong conviction that somebody told me that 
such a suggestion had been made to Dr. Jackson. I mean to give 
this last statement the force of an impression, and nothing more. 

62d. From what source have you the thought that Morton got 
a suggestion of the kind referred to in the answer to 61st cross-in- 
interrogatory ? 
S^^^ Ans. From the nature of his conversation v/ith Wightman and 
Metcalf. 

63d. In yonr opinion, does verification constitute dicovery ? 

Ans. As far as it is synonymous with first conclusive proof. 

64th. In your opinion, in the case of (he ether discovery, where 
and when was this conclusive proof found ? 



337 

Ans. When it was ascertained that a man might be pretty «S3I 
.severely wounded and cut, with a sure and safe exemption from 
pain. 

65th. Whether or not, in your opinion, then, the conclusive 
proof was founded in the operations of the surgeons at the Massa- 
chusetts General Hospital ? 

Ans. The proof was upon two points,— first, the certainty, and '^SM 
second, the safety of the effect of ether. The repeated experi- 
ments of Morton in drawing teeth and their uniform success, 
together with the varying severity of this operation, may be con- 
sidered, I think, as establishing by their collective evidence both 
these points pretty conclusively. Yet the evidence was certainly 
more conclusive when a long c it had been made through the skin 
and the evidence was clinched by the amputation, 

66th. Supposing it to be stated that the fact noticed by a gen- 
tleman was that persons w^ho had inhaled the vapor of ether had 
heen for a few minutes deprived of all sensibility ■— Do you hold , 
to the opinion that this is a physiological fact which one could 
not verify upon himself ? 

Ans. It would be in the highest degree improbable that he could <c^^ 
deliberately verify upon himself the absence of all sensibility. It 
is possible that he might unintentionally wound himself, in uncon- 
scbusly throwing about hb limbs when nearly etherized, and that 
then, when he recovered his senses, he should remember nothing of 
it ; but, unless this should happen, it would be very difficult to 
verify upon himself the fact as described. 

67th. In answer to 61st cross-interrogatory, you state that you 
have a strong conviction that somebody told me that such a sug- 
gestion had been made to Dr. Jackson ; that you mean to give 
this the force of an impression ; whether or not you can state 
what date, at what time, the party told you such a suggestion 
liad been made to Dr. Jackson ? Whether or not you heard this 
from Dr. Gould ? Whether or not he said he attached no impor- 
tance to it ? Whether or not the party who said he made the sug- 
gestion to Dr. Jackson was a Mr. Gallup, an insane man from 
Erattleboro' ? 

Ans. It was a considerable time before the discovery of ether 
inhalation. I did not hear it from. Dr. Gould, and I do not re- 
member that he has said to me that he attached no importance to 
it. My general impression is that the matter was connected with 
a Dr. Gallup. 

6Hth. The report of the French Academy states as follows : 
"That the fact observed by Dr. Jackson, was, that individuals ex- 
posed during a certain time to the action of etherial vapor had 
been temporarily deprived of all sensibility ; this is the physiolog- 
ical fact; Mr. Jackson verified it upon himself." Do you hold this 
to be such a physiological fact that one could not verify upon himself? 

Ans. If by ^'all sensibility'^ is meant all sensibility to pain, I 
22 



338 

hold it to be out of range of probability, and, I think, of possi- 
^^^^^^ bility, except in the accidental way in which I have stated in reply 
'^^^ to 66th cross-interrogatory. 

(Note — This ommission of a note is accidental. J. P. P.) 
70th. Supposing it, in 1845, to be known or believed by a 
gentleman that the nerves of sensation were paralyzed after his 
use of ether by inhalation, and supposing it then to be stated that 
a surgical operation could be performed without pain upon one 
while in that state ; from what could such inference of the per- 
formance of the operation be made without pain, unless from the^ 
above stated knowledge ? 

Ans. I cannot say what additional grounds of inference such a 
gentleman might have. An inference may be made upon insuffi- 
cient grounds, but would not in that case be conclusive. For ex- 
ample; if a gentleman believed that the nerves of sensation were 
^^j^^ paralyzed by his use of ether by inhalation, he could not conclu- 
^*^^ sively infer from it, from his mere belief, that a surgical operation 
could certainly be performed without pain. This belief would be 
inadequate for a conclusive inference. If, instead of believing 
that the nerves of sensation were wholly paralyzed, he actually 
knew it, the case would be different, but I should wish to be sat- 
isfied that he did know such a fact, and perhaps how he knew, 
before I should concede the validity of such inference upon that 
ground alone. 

71st. Whether or not, in your opinion, scientific minds diifer as 
to the rapidity of their inferences ? — and whether or not one mind 
may find by inference a result from certain facts, where another 
mind would not see such a result ? 
Ans. Undoubtedly. 

72d. It appears from the letter of Hon. Edward Everett, con- 
tained in Hon. Edward Stanly and Hon. Alexander Evans's Con- 
gressional report, that, on the day of the meeting of the American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences, at which you gave an account of 
some of Dr. Morton's experiments with sulphuric ether in dental 
surgery, you state that "Dr. Morton had derived his knowledge 
of the substance used" from Dr. Jackson. Please state the source 
of this information. 

Ans. I incline to think that Mr. Everett has unintentionally 
overstated the force of what I said at that time, especially as in 
the same letter, and a few lines after the above extract, Mr. 
Everett goes on to say, "a full account of this discovery is given 
in a paper, by Dr. Henry J. Bigelow, in the Boston Medical and 
Surgical Journal for the 18th of November, 1846. Dr. Bigelow 
ascribes its first suggestion to Dr. Charles T. Jackson, and its 
application, under his advice, for the purpose of mitigating pain 
to Dr. W. T. G. Morton, both of Boston." The true statement 
is the following, which is extracted from the paper alluded to, 
and alone bears upon this point. In fact, it was Yery carefully 



339 

worded, at the stipulation and in the presence of both those gen- 
tlemen, and, if I remember right, by them. "Without entering 
into details, I learn that the patent bears the name of Dr. Charles 
T. Jackson, a distinguished chemist, and of Dr. Morton, a skilful 
dentist of this city, as inventors, and has been issued to the latter 
gentleman as proprietor.'^ 

I think it yery likely that Mr. Everett may associate with me 
some impressions which he may have received at the time of the 
reading of this first paper, and of the conversation which naturally 
took place about it. There was at that time a general impression 
among the comparatively few interested by the new^ discovery, 
that Dr. Charles T. Jackson had made a suggestion which Dr. 
Morton had acted upon : I myself shared this impression, and I 
think it very likely, though I can offer no valuable opinion upon 
this point, that if the w^hole matter had been allowed to rest as it 
stood at this very early period. Dr. Jackson would now have 
more credit for his share in the discovery than is now considered 
by many persons as justly to belong to him. The rapidly in- 
creasing breadth of the claim which he urged led to an investiga- 
tion of its exact merit, as to its novelty — as to the degree of 
confirmed knowledge it contained — and as to Morton's need 
of it. 

73d. You stated in answer to 17th cross-interrogatory, that 
you read a certain paper November 3d, and November 9th, and 
that this paper "connected with the discovery the names of Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson and Dr. Morton, in stating that they appeared 
in the patent." Had any patent been obtained Noverriber 3d, or 
November 9th ? 

Ans, 1 intended that statement to apply to the paper as it was 
prepared for publication, It received some modifications for that 
purpose, which did not alter its important features. I do not 
know .exactly when fhe patent was obtained, though it must have 
been put upon ]japer before the time of the publication alluded to. 

74th. When you read the paper, was the sentence now in it as 
published then contained in it respecting the patent? 

Ans. I do not remember about it, but I think that this sentence 
was substituted for some more extended remarks upon the details 
of the discovery. I do not remember exactly about it. 

7oth. Can you find the original manuscript that you read, so 
as to produce it? 

Ans. No. 

76th. Will you give, as far as you are able, the account in the 
original paper for which, as stated in answer to 74th cross-inter- 
rogatory, the patent sentence was substituted ? 

Ans, I cannot speak with accuracy about it. There was some- 
thing relating to the electric telegraph, or its discovery, which 
was then, or had been, a mooted question, and which Dr. Jackson 
was interested in. He objected to its publication, or desired its 



340 

omission. It ^vas a collateral matter, and had no important con- 
nexion with the other statements. 

77th. Whether or not there have been various theories at the 
hospital as to the mode in which ether produces its effects when 
inhaled ? 

Ans. There was at first, and for sometime, I believe, some dif- 
ference of opinion. Some of the surgeons thinking that the effect 
was that of asphyxia. I have held but one opinion on this sub- 
ject — that it was a state of inebriation. The first paper of No- 
vember 18th pointed to this theory. 

78th. Whether or not, at one time, it was stated and supposed 
that there w^as very little difference betvreen hanging, drownmg, 
and etherization? 

Ans. That I don't know. 

79th. Whether or not, at one time, the theory about complete 
etherization was that it was nothing but dead drunkenness? 

Ans. I have thought so. That has been one opinion. 

80th. How is it nov/ understood What is the present theory 
at the hospital on this point ? Is it that insensibility to pain is 
produced by an unoxygenated state of the blood, which the ether 
induces ? 

Ans. I think not. The present theory is that last spoken of, 
so far as I know. 

81st. Is it not now held and understood at the hospital, that 
the spinal marrow and medulla oblongata are effected by etherized 
blood, and that thus insensibility to pain is induced ? 

Ans. I think not. 

82d. What is the character of Pereira's "Matej*ia Medica?'' 
Is it a w^ork on chemistry, or surgery, or a hand-book of a prac- 
tising physician ? 

Ans. Not a surgical work, but one of standard authority and 
reference upon the subject of materia medica, which includes 
something of chemistry and some other sciences, and something 
^^^ also of the mode of action and effect of remedies. It is rather 
the hand-book of a physician than an exclusively chemical or 
surgical work. 

83d. Whether or not you stated to the members of the Acade- 
my that Dr. Morton obtained his knowledge of the substance used 
by him from Dr. C. T. .Jackson, and administered it under his 
advice, and by his directions, in his dental operation s^ or words to 
that effect ? 

Ans. I doubt w^hether any such explicit statement as that was 
made. 

84th. Whether any statement of such or of any such import 
was made ? 

Ans. I have before said that there was a general notion at the 
time, among those who knew or who thought they knew about it, 
that Dr. Jaekson had suggested the use of ether to Dv, Morton 



341 

I shared this suppositionj and very likely alluded to it at the time 
referred to. 

85th. Whether or not you remember that, when you read the 
paper before referred to as read at the American Academy oi Arts 
and Sciences, as stated in answer to 17th cross-interrogatory, you 
made any oral communication in reference to the new" " com- 
pound," as it was then called, and to its discoverer? 

Ans. There was some subsequent discussion upon the subject^ 
in which I took part. 

86th. Will you please look at a letter of Hon. Edward Ever- 
ett's, published on pages 37 and 38 of Congressional Report of 
Hon. Edward Stanly and others, 1st session of 32d Congress, in 
which comes the following extract : " Dr. Bigelow, after de- 
scribing the dental operation performed by Dr. Morton, under the 
influence of the newly-discovered ' compound,' (as it was then 
called,) stated that Dr. Morton had derived his knowledge of the 
substance used from you." Whether or not this statement of 
what you said recalls your words to your recollection ? 

Ans. No. 

87th. Whether or not you know that the note appended to the 
address of Hon. Edward Everett, on page 15, in which comes the 
extract by you recited in answer to 72d cross-interrogatory, be- 
ginning, " Dr. Bigelow ascribes its first suggestion to Dr. Charles 
T. Jackson," &c., was written by him from his recollection of 
what you stated, and not from what was printed in your article 
of November ISth, 1846, in the Boston Medical and Surgical 
Journal, and that he referred to the article, having learned fromi 
you that it was to be published in that journal on the 18th No- 
vember ? 

Ans. Having no means of knowing, I infer that Mr. Everett 
spoke from his general impressions, received at the time of the 
discussion at the Academy, and that he took the date of the ymb- 
iication of the substance of that discussion, or what he very justly 
supposed to be so, from the journal in which it was published, 
after its publication. It seems to me that he could not have re- 
ferred to the article where it alludes to the particular point of 
discovery, because the only statement there is the following : 
*' Without entering into details, I learn that the patent bears the 
name of Charles T. Jackson, a distinguished chemist, and of Dr. 
Morton, a skilful dentist, of this city, as inventors, and has been 
issued to the latter gentleman, as proprietor." Nor do I remem- 
ber to have had any communication with Mr. Everett, between 
the writing and the publishing of this paragraph, which might 
have led him to suppose that it would be published. 

88th. Will you please look at the date of Hon. Edward Ever- 
ett's letter of November 12th, 1846, on page 4 of his address, 
and state whether or not that and his statement there, that he 
transmits with this note a copy of the address, affects your opin- 



342 

ion on this point, and tends to show that he could not have seen 
the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal of November 18, 1846, 
at that time ? 

Ans. I read that now for the first time, and from the fact that 
the date of this letter is November 12th, and that the date of my 
publication is November 18th, I infer that the note was added 
after the printing of Mr. Everett's remarks, and perhaps to the 
proof-sheets, but 1 know nothing about it. 

89th. Whether or not, shortly after the announcement of the 
ether discovery to the world, you stated that the idea of the dis- 
covery unquestionably came from Dr. Jackson's laboratory ? 

Ans. I do not at all remember, but there was a time when I 
thought so, if by this is meant that the suggestion was made by 
Dr. .Jackson. 

90th. Whether or not you remember that you stated at New- 
buryport, in the railroad depot, to some medical gentlemen there, 
that the idea of the new discovery unquestionably originated in 
Dr. Jackson's laboratory — and this at a time shortly after the ether 
discovery was known to the world? 

Ans. I have no recollection of it, I dare say. 

91st. Whether or not, on December 9th, 1846, in your reply 
to Dr. Flagg, published at that date in the Boston Daily Adver- 
tiser, you us^ the following language: "When Dr. Flagg re- 
fuses to allow to Drs. Jackson and Morton any right to their dis- 
covery, I am ready to show what I consider their right to be," ? 
&c. 

Ans Yes; that is the sense of the paragraph from which it m 
■extracted. 

92d. Do you recollect that you approached to Dr. Jackson as 
he entered the room at the meeting of the American Academy, on 
or about the 11th of November, 1846, and told him that you read 
a paper touching the new discovery while he was gone, and had 
not mentioned his name in the paper, and that you wished to see 
Dr. Jackson before you published it, because you wanted to get 
all the particulars — all the facts from him — or something of this 
import ? 

Ans. No. 

93d. Whether you called on Dr. Jackson, subsequently to No- 
vember 11th, to ask him to call at Dr. Gould's ? Can you state 
what word you left at his house to come, or the purport of them ? 

Ans. I did so call, but cannot state the words. I called more 
than once, hoping to see him. Failing to find him, I left word, 
as near as I remember, requesting him to come to Dr. Gould's on 
Sunday evening. I think, also, that this paper was to be finally 
looked over, with reference to publication. My impression now 
is, also, that the meeting was arranged in a great measure for the 
purpose of having him present. 



343 

94th. By whom at Dr. Gould's was this arranged, to have Dr. 
Jackson present? 

Ans. There again I give my impression that I saw Mrs. Jack- 
son at the door. Dr. Gould was to be present at the meeting ; 
Dr. Morton, I think ; Mr. Eddy was there by accident. I think 
the arrangement was between myself, Dr. Morton and Dr. Gouldo 

95th. Did he come? Who were present when he came ? What 
were those present engaged in? 

Ans. He came. Dr. Morton, Dr. Gould and Mr. Eddy were 
present with myself. Those present were engaged in talking. 
The paper which was to be published w^as lying on the table. 

96th. In manuscript or in proof-sheets was the paper ? 

Ans. In manuscript. 

97th. What was said to Dr. Jackson, and by whom, and what 
was his reply ? 

Ans. Something to the effect of the inquiry, as to " what was 
the matter; there is no occasion for all this?" I think by Dr. 
Gould. I don't remember w^hat Dr. Jackson's reply was. 

98th. How long was Dr. Jackson present ? Did he sit down ? 

Ans. Whether he sat down, I cannot say. He was present for 
some time. There was no haste or hurry on the part of anybody. 
When the matter was finished, we broke up. 

99th. Was Dr. Jackson asked to read the article in question ? 

Ans. He was asked to look at it ; I dare say, to read it ; per- 
haps, to hear it read. 

100th. Did .Dr. Jackson, after reading it, or hearing it read, 
say that it was unjust to him, or words of this import ? 

Ans. I don't remember. He must have objected to something, 
because it was altered to suit him, that being one great object of 
the meeting. 

101st. How long was it after you left word at Dr. Jackson's 
house before he came to Dr. Gould's ? 

Ans. I believe it was Sunday when I last called there, and he 
came in the evening of that day. 

102d. Whether or not Dr. Jackson said that the article was 
unjust to him, because it did not distinctly state that the discovery 
originated with him, or words to that effect ? 

Ans. Not that I remember. 

103d. Whether or not Dr. Gould said to Dr. Jackson, " I am 
glad to see you and Dr. Morton face to face. I've no doubt but 
that, if you state fully your claims, Morton will fully admit 
them? 

Ans. I don't remember it. He might have said it. 

104th. Whether or not Dr. Jackson did, then and there, state, 
point by point, his claims — that he first discovered that breathing 
of ether vapor would produce insensibility ; that he communicated 
this to Morton, and suggested him to employ it in the extraction 
of teeth, to both of which Morton assented ? 



344 

Ans. I have no recollection of it. 

105th. Did not Dr. Jackson state there that he sent Dr. Mor- 
ton to the hospital to ask Dr. Warren to use ether to test it in 
surgery, or something to this effect ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of it. 

106th. Was anything said by you, or any one then present, 
that Dr. Jackson then claimed that Morton was nothing but a 
tool, or something to that effect ? 

Ans. I don't remember it. 

107th. Whether or not Mr. Eddy wrote or prepared any part 
of the article in question ? 

Ans. No ; unless it may have been the four lines which include 
the names of Dr. Jackson and Dr. Morton. He may have ar- 
ranged those. They were the subject of some discussion ; but I 
don't remember that he did. 

108th. Was anything said by Mr. Eddy, or any one then, 
present, about writing or publishing what he pleased, whether 
Dr. Ja-ckson objected or not ? 

Ans. I don't remember it. 

109th. Whether Dr. Jackson left the room or house, the others 
remaining there, or not ? 

Ans. That I don't rememiber. 

110th. At the time Dr. Jackson brought the oxygen to the 
hospital, (2d January, 1847, I think it has been stated, was the 
time,) did you have any part in the operation ? Did you not 
operate on the knee of the patient ? 

Ans. I don't remember that I did. It could be easily settled 
by referring to the hospital records. 

111th. Whether or not you then saw Dr. Jackson in conversa- 
tion with the person who administered the ether ? Did not the 
person who administered the ether put a probe into the valve of 
the inhaler, after Dr. Jackson's remarks to him ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of any thing of the sort. It 
might have happened without my seeing it. 

112th. Whether or not you then heard Dr. Jackson, in conver- 
sation, state his opinion as to the superiority of a sponge over an 
inhaler ? 

Ans. No. 

113th. In answer to 1st cross-interrogatory, you say a medical 
gentleman told me he breathed ether for exhilarating purposes, 
and became insensible ; whether, or not, you meant unconscious ? 

Ans. Yes. 

114th. In answer to 39th interrogatory, you state that a man 
dead drunk may have his leg amputated without feeling it, and 
recover perfectly. Has such a course of proceeding with patients 
been pursued by surgeons ? Is this course worthy of science ? 
and of entering into the art of rational surgery ? 



345 

Ans. It might be a desirable thing to do in some cases, were 
there no ether inhalation. I am not aware that the process has 
ever been intentionally adopted. 

115th. In answer to 43d interrogatory, you speak of Dr. Mor- 
ton as urging the use of ether on the world, &c. Do you not 
know that he would not sell rights under his patent to use ether 
to any of the dentists of Boston ? 

Ans. I had forgotten, if it was so. I know that his exertions 
were very great to extend its use. I suppose, if it was so, it was 
because the Boston dentists were his immediate competitors, and 
because they knew some things which they would not tell him. 

116th. Can you specify what things, and who of the Boston 
dentists, knew things they would not tell him? 

Ans. The principal dentists had, and I believe have, their own 
formulae for the manufacture of mineral teeth, also their own 
processes, which, with their individual skill in their application, 
is the cause of results of very diflferent degrees of excellence, 
and the manufacture above alluded to, is no inconsiderable part 
of their business. 

117th. But is it within your knowledge that Morton could not 
learn these things from the dentists ? 

Ans. I think they would, and perhaps very properly, have 
expected a pecuniary equivalent. 

118th. Whether or not, when your paper referred to in answer 
to 72d- cross-interrogatory, was first read, while Dr. Jackson was 
engaged at the copper mines of Maryland, was he away from 
Boston ? 

Ans. I don't know where he was. I should now say that at 
that time it did not occur to me to inquire whether he was so 
or not. 

119th. Whether or not you consider two conditions essential 
in order to insure safety in inhalation of sulphuric ether : 1st, 
purity from alcohol and acid ; 2d, the due admixture of atmos- 
pheric air? 

Ans. The first is very desirable — I cannot say that it is essen- 
tial ; but the air is absolutely vital to the safety of the inhalation. 

120th. In your paper, published November 18th, were these 
two points indicated ? 

Ans. On the 312th page of the Journal alluded to, twelfth line, 
it is stated that '' one aperture admits the air into the interior of 
the globe, where, charged with vapor, it is drawn through the 
second into the lungs. The inspired air thus passes through the 
bottle," &c. It is also stated on the 316th page, that ''it has 
been considered desirable by the interested parties that the char- 
acter of the agent employed by them should not at this time be 
announced." Nothing is said about ether in the connexion re- 
ferred to in the question. 



346 

121st. Is tlie importance of atmospheric air, referred to in the 
article or pointed out, except as stated in the above extracts ? 

Ans. No. 

122d. If these two points, air and purity of ether, are not 
cared for, is there not danger that patients will be asphyxiated ? 

Ans. Certainly, if the admission of air is not provided for. 

123d. Can you state what Dr. Warren read to the class, when, 
as in answer to 7th interrogatory, as there stated, he took from 
his pocket a letter ? 

Ans. No. 

124th. Whether or not, at the time Morton was in the ante- 
room at the hospital, referred to by you in answer to 6th inter- 
rogatory, Morton, then and there, wrote a letter to the surgeons 
of the hospital, or any of them, in reference to the article used, 
or to be used, for inhalation ? 

Ans. I don't know that he did. 

125th. If respiration is too weak to raise the valves of the in- 
haler, and the patient gets neither air nor ether, would he not 
then be asphyxiated ? 

Ans. Yes. 

126th. Whether or not you remember any letters or letter of 
Dr. Jackson's, published in the Boston newspapers, respecting 
etherization, early after its first announcement ? 

Ans. It sounds so probable that I cannot say no ; but I have 
no distinct recollection. 

127th. Whether or not you had frequent interviews, early after 
the announcement of the ether discovery, touching the matter, 
with Mr. R. H. Eddy ? 

Ans. I should say yes. I cannot say how frequent. I should 
say rather occasional than frequent. 

128th. Whether or not you discussed with him an alleged differ- 
ence between discovery in scientific, and discovery in a patent 
law sense ? 

Ans. Yes, I had some such discussion. 

129th. Had you, or not, interviews with Mr. Robert H. Eddy, 
a patent solicitor of this city, in which were discussed the claims 
of W. T. G. Morton to the honor of the discovery, on the grounds 
of his performance of an experiment suggested and devised by 
Dr. Jackson, and committed to Dr. M orton for performance ? 

Ans. I talked the subject over with him. As to these points, 
I cannot say. 

130th. Did you, or not, say to Dr. Gould, or others, that this 
discovery of the inhalation of ether, for the prevention of pain in 
surgical operations, was a thing one might ride round the world 
on? 

Ans. Y'es. 



347 

131st. Did you, or not, say that you meant to be tlie first to 
publish an account of it ? 

Ans. I said that somebody must publish a first account of it, 
and requested him to make arrangements, if practicable, for me 
to see some of Dr. Morton's experiments in dentistry, when, if 
Dr. Morton agreed, I would publish an account of them. 

132d, Whether or not, in inhaling ether from a sponge, you 
get a more full supply of atmospheric air than you would from 
the inhalers, such as were used at the hospital ? 

Ans. I think it is a simpler, and perhaps surer way ; at any 
rate, it is easier to regulate and to vary the amount of air« 

133d. Whether or not you consider that the gentlemen com- 
posing the Commission of the French Academy on etherization, 
as Velpeau, Roux, Flourens, Dumeril, Andral, and others, are 
men of science ? 

Ans. Yes. 

134th. Do you remember whether, at the operation at the hos- 
pital of January 2d, an inhaler was used ? 

Ans. I do not. 

135th. Whether the statement of Dr. Gallup, referred to in 
answer to 61st and 67th cross-interrogatories, was made to you, so 
far as you recall the matter of which, as stated, you have an im- 
pression merely, after the discovery of etherization had been pro- 
claimed to the world, and w4ien there was much public discussion 
as to its authorship? 

Ans. I should say yes. 

136th. When, for the first time, if ever, did you learn from 
Dr. Morton of any experiments by him alleged to have been made 
anterior to September, 1846, with sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I do not remember : but I did not feel that the account 
of them was satisfactory, until the evidence of Metcalf and Wight- 
man. 

137th. Before a surgical operation on a patient under the influ- 
ence of etherial inhalation, supposing an induction to have been 
made, should you, or not, consider that this induction which led 
to a statement, accompanied with directions for the inhalation of 
ether, which directions pointed out the two conditions by means 
of which inhalation would be attended with safety — first, purity 
of the ether for alcohol and acids ; and, second, the due admix- 
ture of atmospheric air, constituted the discovery ? 

Ans. No, not necessarily. A statement based upon any induc- 
tion and accompanied with these directions, would constitute a 
discovery only so far as the assertion conveyed by it was author- 
ized by previous evidence. 

138th. Suppose John Roe makes certain experiments from which 
he neither offers nor deduces an inference or conclusion ; but that 
Thomas Doe, performing the same experiments, draws a certain 



348 

inference, and proclaims, as a result, a new truth, is not Thomas 
Doe the discoverer of this new truth ? 

Ans. Yes, if the experiments warranted the inference, and he 
can satisfy other people that they did. 

139th. What is meant or referred to by your statement of the 
increasing breadth of the claim, as stated by you in answer to 
72d cross-interrogatory ? 

Ans. I can only give a general statement of its nature ; that, 
first. Dr. Jackson spoke lightly of the discovery ; I refer to the 
sort of statements which have been subsequently put in evidence 
by Dr. Gould and Mr. Chandler. He kept entirely aloof from 
the first experiments, which goes to show that he did not have an 
adequate idea of the immense magnitude of the discovery, espe- 
cially as, when it was confirmed, his attitude towards it, and his 
interest in it, were so very difi*erent. I suppose it to be also true 
that he was at first contented with the pecuniary sum of five hun- 
dred dollars for his share in it. All this goes to show what his 
own feeling was, at first, as to the nature of this claim. I think 
now, and for some time past, he has conceived himself to be en- 
titled to the whole credit of the discovery, and during the inter- 
val, I suppose his views of the amount of his claim to the discovery 
were gradually expanded. 

140th. Are you aware of any new fact stated by Dr. Jackson 
in any late statement by him of his claim that he did not origi- 
nally state ? 

Ans. No ; I have not road the recent pamphlets on the sub- 
ject of this discovery. 

141st. And what was meant by your statement of an investi- 
gation as stated in answer to 72d cross-interrogatory ? Investi- 
gation by whom ? when ? 

Ans. By various persons who had become incidentally interested 
in the discussion of the subject. I refer to no one in particular, 
but many people had become interested enough to follow the 
evidence as it tmmed up. 

142d. Is this the circular by you referred to in answer to 
81st cross-interrogatory, from vfhich the following extract comes 
on page 50: — ''The Letheon gas thus administered by Dr. Hare, 
was invented, we understand, by Dr. T. Jackson, of Boston, and 
the ingredients were disclosed to Mr. Morton, a celebrated den- 
tist of Boston, who procured a patent for the same, and has 
invented an apparatus for inhalation." (The above extract ob- 
jected to.) 

Ans. No ; what I had in my mind was something from Dr. 
Morton, announcing the discovery, and offering to dispose of it, 
but I may be wrong about that. 

143d. Is not this an occurrence not unfrequent in dentistry, 
that, under the influence of inhaled ether, the perceptive power 



349 

remains in the patient^ while he is insensible to pain, as for ex- 
ample, the account by James Robinson, of Gower Street, Lon- 
don ? ''In others a certain degree of power remained ; the 
patient knew what the operator was doing ; perceived him, for 
example, take hold of a tooth and draw it out ; felt the grating 
of the instrument, but still felt no pain?" 

Ans. I believe that in some cases the perceptive power re- 
mains in part, and modified as described. I don't know that it is 
common. 

144th. What anaesthetic agent, besides sulphuric ether, if any, 
is and has been in use at the hospital since the ether discovery ? 

Ans. Chloroform and chloric ether: chloroform for a little 
while, and chloric ether by two of the surgeons, but not by the 
others. Chloroform was in use a few weeks after its announce- 
ment, and until it was thought to be dangerous. Chloric ether 
has been used until very recently by two of the six surgeons at 
the hospital, but not by the others*^ 

Direct resumed hy Mr, Dana. 

1st. Please refer to your answer to the 51st cross-interroga- 
tory. Should you or not say that the patient's being wide 
awake and talking was proof, and how far proof, of his having 
proper command of his intellectual faculties ? 

Ans. No. A patient may be, in appearance, wide awake and 
talking, after inhaling ether, and yet not have full command of 
his intellectual faculties. Such a state commonly results from 
imperfect etherization, insufficient for surgical purposes. 

2d. Please refer to your answers to the 57th and 63d cross- 
interrogatories. Do you understand that there is any, and if 
any, what distinction, in scientific or popular use, between the 
words "verification" and "proof," especially as applied to the 
subject-matter of this controversy ? 

Ans. Both verification and proof may convey to the mind the 
truth of a previous supposition ; but, strictly speaking, there is 
a difference between them. Proof establishes truth and carries 
with it conviction. Verification may, like proof, establish the 
truth of a supposition or theory, or it may be used to confirm, 
by additional experiment or evidence, what has been already 
established. So that verification is thus, either synonymous with 
proof, or, in another sense, it confirms it. In the answers re- 
ferred to, it was stated that he who first verifies a hypothesis, or 
in other words, who goes through with the first conclusive proof 
of it, is the discoverer of the new truth, and in that case the 
"word "verification" is used as synonymous with "proof." In 
mathematical science, astronomy, &c., such proof may lie in the 
original calculation, which is itself susceptible of rigorous abstract 



350 

proof, and wMcli is then subject only to the error of human falli- 
bility ; so that, if the subsequent occurrence of a predicted 
phenomenon, for example, should show that there had been no 
mistake in previous calculation, such previous calculation would 
then be asaple title to discovery on the part of the person who 
had announced it to the world in the form of a prediction ; 
especially if he had, in so doing, virtually staked his scientific 
reputation upon its accuracy. In such a case the merit of veri- 
fication, or of confirming the calculation by subsequent observa- 
tion of the predicted phenomenon would be small. But, in many 
sciences, among which is physiology, nothing can be predicted 
from previous calculation, nor affirmed, except after actual ex- 
periment. In this latter science one experiment does not justify 
a conclusive inference with regard to another, so that a discoverer 
must have proved by experiment the special truth to which he 
^, lays claim. The great points of the ether discovery were, that 

points on ether would affect everybody, and that it was safe ; that is : first, 
the ether the certainty ; second, the safety of its effects ; to which may be 
discovery, ^^^q^ ii^q completeness of the insensibility. Certainly, the one 
experiment to which Dr. Jackson lays claim is no proof of either 
of these points, while the multiplied experiments of Morton, 
both first proved and verified them. Dr. Jackson's experiment 
of inhaling ether, to alleviate the irritation of chlorine in the 
lungs, till he became insensible, was not sufficient ground for the 
inference that ether would produce complete insensibility to the 
pain of the severest surgical operations in all cases, and that it 
would do so with safety. The process of verification in this case 
was something more than confirming a truth previously estab- 
lished. No truth was so established. New experiments, and 
many of them, were to be made. Great probable danger was to 
be encountered, and great responsibility assumed ; even to the 
extent that, had Dr. Morton killed somebody with the new 
agent — of which Sir Benjamin Brodie, long after, said, that ^* it 
had killed Guinea pigs, and that the great question was, whether 
it was safe" — he would very likely have been indicted for man- 
slaughter, in rashly and ignorantly experimenting with an untried 
and powerful agent. On the other hand. Dr. Jackson, continuing 
to occupy his early position of sedulously keeping aloof from the 
whole course of early experiment, would have been held blame- 
less iR the matter. Verification was, in this case, not confirma- 
tion of what was previously known, but proof of what was not 
previously known. It was not only confirmation of a fact of in- 
sensibility to the feeling of a chair ; but discovery, by new, ex- 
tended, varied, and, at that time, hazardous experiment, and 
-completed proof of insensibility to the most excruciating pain ; 
that this was sure to be produced in all cases, and that it was 
safe. Thig seems to me to be Dr. Morton's ground, even upon 



351 

Dr. Jackson's statement that Dr. Morton received the hypothesis 
from him for verification or for test. Dr. Morton, however, 
really needed, according to the evidence of Wightman and Met- 
calf, no such hypothesis at the hands of Dr. Jackson. 

3d. Please refer to your answer to the 125th cross-interrogatory. 
Why would a person be asphyxiated if he received neither ether 
nor air through the inhaler ? 

Ans. Because, if he got no air, he would get no oxygen, upon 
an adequate supply of which life depends. 

4th. Please refer to your answer to the 57th cross-interrogatory. 
Do, or not, the perceptive powers remain, when the power of 
intelligent reasoning on things presented to the mind, through 
the senses, is impaired or lost ? 

Ans. They may, if by perceptive powers is meant the func- 
tions of the senses ; seeing, hearing, &c. 

5th. Please refer to your answ^er to the 57th cross-interrogatory. 
Please define youi' meaning as to conclusive proof being discovery. 
In what sense do you use "conclusive proof?" 

Ans. He gives conclusive proof of a fact or truth who supplies 
evidence which establishes it beyond doubt. He who first does 
so in regard to a new fact or truth is its discoverer. 

6th. You have been inquired of as to your changes of mind 
in reference to the claims of Dr. Morton and Dr. Jackson to 
this discovery. Please state what these changes have been, and 
how produced, from the first ? 

Ans. I think I have already said, that, at first, and for some 
days, I supposed that Dr. Morton was solely concerned in the 
discovery. I afterwards believed that Dr. Jackson was concerned 
in it with Dr. Morton. At a subsequent period, upon examining 
the evidence as it came out, and after looking up the question of 
precedent, I came to the conclusion that Dr. Morton w^as entitled 
to the credit of it. 

7th. At the interview at Dr. Gould's, did Dr. Jackson claim to 
have discovered the full anaesthetic power of ether, as now known, 
or only to have suggested its probably having some ansesthetic 
power ; or how otherwise ? 

Abs. I do not remember. 

8th. During the first part of the time that you understood Dr. 
Jackson's claim to be in some way connected with this discovery, 
did you understand him to claim to have discovered w^hat is now 
known before the experiments of Dr. Morton, or only to have 
had the idea that ether might have some valuable ansesthetic 
power, and so to have suggested to Dr. Morton ; or how other- 
wise ? 

Ans. I understood Dr. Jackson to have suggested its use : to See Chan- 
have told Morton to try it. ' <i^^i'- 

9th. Did Dr. JacksoB, when you first heard him speak of this, 



352 

claim to have made the full discoverj before, and to have com- 
municated it as a full discovery to Dr. Morton, or to have made 
the discovery through Br. Morton, as his agent, following up an 
idea he had entertained before ; or how otherwise ? 

Ans. I cannot saj. 

10th. Take the case previously put to you, of a person inhal- 
ing ©ther as an antidote to chlorine gas, feeling numbness, then 
passing into unconsciousness, remaining unconscious about one 
quarter of an hour, then recovering consciousness, feeling a relief 
of the pain in the throat, not feeling the chair under him, fee; 
suppose this to have been the only e:^periment, please to state 
whether, or not, he could know whether h^ had, or had not, been 
in a state of peril while unconscious ? 

Ans. No. 

11th. Could he, or not, know, or scientifically infer, as a fact, 
that it would affect other persons, generally, as it did him, on the 
point of sleep, torpor, or excitability, or of safety ? 

Ans. He might infer, or suppose, that it would do so, but he 
could not know it, nor would the inference or supposition have 
great value Until experiment had tested the fact ; this is especially 
true of the points of excitabiKty and safety. 

12th. Could he, or not, know, or infer scientifically as a fact, 
that it would affect him, in all cases, as it seemed to then ? 

Ans. Not as to safety, nor, perhaps, as to excitability ; the in- 
ference would have more weight than that implied in the last 
question, though it would not be perfectly conclusive. 

13th. How far, if at all, would such an experiment add to 
proof then in existence, that ether could be inha^led from a hand- 
kerchief to the extent of producing sleep, or intoxication, without 
serious ill effects ? 

Ans. As respects the safety of the process, not much. 

Cross resumed hy Mr, Jackson. 

Ist. Whether, or not, you remember that, at a meeting of the 
Boston Society of Medical Improvement, Dr. C. T. Jackson 
moved for the appointment of a committee of the society to col- 
lect and record all the cases, in surgery and otherwise, in which 
ether had been used, with all the facts therewith connected, and 
this in the winter of 1846-7 ? 

Ans. No. 

2d. Whether, or not, your paper in the Boston Medical and 
Surgical Journal of November 18th, is printed as read November 
9th, before the Boston Society of Medical Improvement, an ab- 
stract having been read November 3d, before the American Acad- 
emy of Arts and Sciences ? 

Ans. Pretty much. Between the two readings the case of am- 



353 

putation occurred, and was added, and, after the last reading, 
that fact wliich relates to the question of invention and patent 
was modified, at the desire of Dr. Morton and of Dr. Jackson ; 
the scientific part was little changed. 

3d. Do you not remember that, on the od of November, you 
readj a« from this paper, or stated before reading this paper, or 
iiffcer reading it, or in connexion with it, or on the evening on 
which it was read, that the first suggestion of the use of ether 
by inhalation, to produce a state of temporary insensibility to 
pain, came from Dr. C. T. Jackson ? and do you not remember 
that then you ascribed its application, under the advice of Dr. 
C. T. Jackson, for the purpose of mitigating pain, to Dr. W. T. 
G. Morton ? 

Ans. What I remember of the remarks made or read by my- 
self, at this meeting of the Academy, six years ago, is fully sta- 
ted in another part of this testimony, to which I refer. 

4th. If you shall have answered that you do thus remember, 
"will you please state from whom you had this information ? 

Ans. I answer the same to this interrogatory as to the last. 

5th. In answer to ITth cross-interrogatory, you have stated at 
some length what had been done by you in relation to the ether 
question, the papers and articles you wrote, &c. Will you please 
iitate whether, or not, in your relations to Dr. W. T. G. Morton, 
"there has been any promise, or fee of a pecuniary nature, or by 
way of gift, or present, or testimonial, or otherwise, from him to 
you ? If any, of any such, or a like character, will you please 
state this matter fully ? 

Ans. No promise, or fee of a pecuniary nature. Upon look- 
ing back, I find that, some months after the discovery of ether 
inhalation, I received from Dr, Morton a ^'Morton's Inhaler." 
A year or two after, Dr. Morton gave me a pencil-case, of small 
value, but whether as "fee, or gift, or present, or testimonial, or 
otherwise," I have not considered, and am unable to state. 

HENRY J. BIGELOW. 



The following is the copy referred to by me in the deponent's 
answer to the 6th direct interrogatory, as annexed and marked A. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 



A boy of 16, of medium statute and strength, was seated in 
the chair. The first few inhalations occasioned a quick cough, 
•which, afterwards subsided ; at the end of eight minutes, the 
head fell back, and the arms dropped, but, owing to some resist- 

23 



354 

ance in opening the mouth, the tooth could not be reached 
"before he awoke. He again inhaled for two minutes, and slept 
three minutes, during which time the tooth, an inferior molar, 
was extracted. At the moment of extraction, the features 
assumed an expression of pain, and the hand was raised. Upon 
coming to himself, he said he had '• a first rate dream, very quiet," 
he said, '• and had dreamed of Napoleon — had not the slightest 
consciousness of pain — the time had seemed long," and he left 
the chair, feeling no uneasiness of any kind, and evidently in a 
high state of admiration. The pupils were dilated during the 
state of unconsciousness, and the pulse rose from 130 to 142. 

A girl of sixteen immediately occupied the chair. After 
coughing a little, she inhaled during three minutes, and fell 
asleep, when a melar tooth was extracted, after which she con- 
tinued to slumber tranquilly during three minutes more. At the 
moment when force was applid, she flinched and frowned, raising 
her hand to her mouth, but said she had been dreaming a pleasant 
dream, and knew nothing of the operation. 

A stout boy of twelve, at the first inspiration coughed consi- 
derably, and required a good deal of encouragement to induce 
him to go on. At the end of three minutes from the first fair 
inhalation, the muscles were relaxed and the pupil dilated. 
During the attempt to force open the mouth, he recovered his 
consciousness, and again inhaled during two minutes, and in the 
ensuing one minute two teeth were extracted, the patient seem- 
ing somewhat conscious, but, upon actually awakening, he de- 
clared '*it was the best fun he ever saw," avowed his intention 
to come there again, and insisted upon having another tooth ex- 
tracted upon the spot. A splinter which had been left afforded 
an opportunity of complying with his wish, but the pain proved 
to be considerable. Pulse at first, 110 ; during sleep, 96 ; after- 
wards, 144 ; pupils dilated. 

The next patient was a healthy-looking, middle-aged woman, 
who inhaled the vapor for four minutes ; in the course of the 
next two minutes, a back tooth was extracted, and the patient 
continued smiling in her sleep for three minutes more. Pulse, 
120 ; not afiected at the moment of the operation, but smaller 
during sleep. Upon coming to herself she exclaimed that " it 
was beautiful — she dreamed of being at home — it seemed as if 
she had been gone a month." 

These cases, which occurred successively in about an hour, at 
the room of Dr. Morton, are fair examples of the average results 
produced by the inhalation of the vapor, and will convey an 
idea of the feelings and expressions of many of the patients 
subjected to the process. 



355 



The following is the copy of the statements of Pereira referred 
to by me in the deponents answer to the 1st cross interrogatory, 
as annexed, and marked B. J» P. P. 

B. 

**When the vapor of ether, sufficiently diluted with atmos- 
pheric air, is inhaled, it causes irritation about the epiglottis, a 
sensation of fullness in the head, and a succession of effects anal- 
ogous to those caused by the protroxide of nitrogen, (vide p. 156,) 
and persons peculiarly susceptible of the action of the one are 
also powerfully affected by the other, (Journ. of Science, vol. 4, 
p. 158.) If the air be too strongly impregnated with ether, stupe- 
faction ensues. In one case this state continued ^vith occasional 
al periods of intermission for more than thirty hours ; for many 
days the pulse was so much lowered that considerable fears were 
entertained for the safety of the patient, (op. cit.) In another 
case, an apoplectic condition, which continued for some hours, 
was produced." 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, \ 
Suffolk county f j 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam of Henry J. Bigelow, taken before us upon the pe- 
tition of Dr. William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this. 
Commonwealth. 

GEORGE T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Two Justices of the Peace, and Counsel I e'rs at Law. 
Boston, December 24, 1852. 



Br. Townsend's deposition, (one of the surgeons of the hospital,) 
to satne effect as Dr. Bigelow^ s, fyc. 

I, S. D. Townsend of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, physician and surgeon, being 
first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by 
R. H. Dana, jr. esq., counsel for William T. G. Morton. 

1st. Are you, and how long have you been, a surgeon of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital ? 

Ans. I am, and have been for about thirteen years. 

2d. Do you know Dr. C. T. Jackson ? How long, and how in- 
timately ? 



356 

x\ns. I do know him. I have known Iiim since he was a stu- 
dent of medicine, and have always lived near him. I have been, 
familiar with him for twenty years. 

3d. What is the street and number of your residence ? How 
long have you lived there ? Where does Dr. Jackson reside, and 
where did he in 1846 ? 

Ans. I reside at 18 Somerset street. I have lived there and in 
the adjoining house twenty-four years. Dr. Jackson boards, I 
think, in Somerset street, about six houses distance from me on 
the opposite side of the street. His office was at the same place 
in eighteen hundred and forty-six. I don't know whether he lived 
there then. I have no dQubt he did. 

4th. How long have you known Dr. William T. G. Morton ? 
How intimately? 

Ans. I have known Dr. Morton since eighteen hundred and 
forty-six. My first acquaintance with him commenced when 
ether was introduced at the hospital. Since then I have had oc- 
casional intercourse with him. 

5th, Please to state, in order of time, all your knowledge of 
the first use of ether for anaesthetic purposes ? 

Ans. The first time I ever saw any ether ased, or an unknown 
preparation, was the sixteenth of October, eighteen hundred and 
forty-six, at the Massachusetts General Hospital. 

It was brought there by Dr. Morton, and used at his request 
by Dr. Warren, senior, upon a person who was to have a surgical 
operation upon some part of the face or neck. Dr. Warren stated 
to the surgeons that Dr. Morton had a preparation b}^ which he 
could annihilate pain, and render a j)erson insensible during a sur- 
gical operation. In preparing this agent, he went into a room 
under the seats of the operating theatre. I asked, at the tirae^ 
why he ment in there to prepare it, and was told that it was a 
secret medicine, and he therefore wished to conceal what it was 
composed of. It was contained in a glass retort, I think, with a 
mouth-piece in which was inserted a valve, a very imperfect thin^;. 
Thi-ough this valve the external air was to be admitted to mix 
with the vapor of the agent in the bottle. Upon smelling this 
preparation, I found it contained cascarilia bark, mixed with ether. 
Upon inquiry I found that this bark had beea mixed to conceal 
the other ingredient, which was the active one, the ether. The 
patient inhaled this preparation and became apparently insensible. 
Dr. Warren then performed the operation. The patient was asked, 
after the operation was finished, if he felt any pain. His answer 
was, that he had a sensation of something scraping him, but that 
it gave him no pain. The next day, I thmk, the 17th of October, 
Dr. George Hayward performed an operation at the hospital, re- 
moving a tumor from the arm, in which this agent, ether, was em- 
ployed, with the same result. I do not reccollect whether the ether 
was used between that and the 6th of November, though it may 



357 

have been. On that day I think the leg of Alice Mohan was to be 
amputated. I think it was upon the day of this operation that we 
had a consultation whether we should use this agent, being a secret 
medicine. Dr. Warren then introduced a note of Dr. Morton, or 
by his permission, disclosed to the surgeons what this medicine 
was composed of, giving its use to the hospital. It was then de- 
cided to perform the operation under its influence. This was the 
first capital operation, or amputation, which had ever been per- 
formed under the influence of ether. The ether has been in con- 
stant use at the hospital from that time to the present, as an an- 
aesthetic agent. The sponge was very soon substituted for this 
apparatus to inhale ether. 

6th, Who had charge of the anaesthetic part of these experi- 
ments at the hospital ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton. 

7th. Who administered it iirst when used by the surgeons in 
private practice ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton, before the use of the sponge. 

8th. Did any one besides Dr. Morton administer it in surgical 
cases, before the surgeons administered it themselves ? 

Ans. I don't know of any one. 

9tb. Why was the sponge substituted for the instruments? 

Ans. Because the sponge readily admitted atmospheric air to mix 
with the vapor of ether, and w^as not attended with any trouble. 

10th. Had there, or not, been asphyxia produced at the hospital 
in the use of the instruments ? 

Ans. There had. 

11th. How dangerous? How, as compared with the sponge? 
Was that a reason for their disuse ? 

Ans. There was danger of death, if atmospheric air w^as not 
readily admitted to the patient. Atmospheric air was intended to 
be introduced always by the instruments, but they were apt to get 
out of order, and the atmospheric air would not be admitted when 
they supposed it might be. I don't know much difference be- 
tM^een the occurrence of asphyxia under the instruments and under 
the sponge. The cases occur now under the sponge frequently. 
That was supposed to be an objection to the apparatus at that 
time, but the principal reason for its disuse was the greater con- 
venience of the sponge, being able to carry it about. We don't 
now consider asphyxia dangerous at all — not that produced by the 
inhaling of ether. I have seen it so many times. They readily 
get over it by opening the mouth, and other means. The reason 
I say we don't now consider it dangerous, is because it occurs so 
often, and is always relieved. It is a very common occurrence. 

12th. Is asphyxia produced by instruments more dangerous 
than that produced by the sponge? 

Ans. I should think not. I don't know any difference. 

13th. By whose advice, if by any one's in particular, was the 



358 

substitution made ? Was it done gradually, or at once, at the hos- 
pital ? 

Ans. I am not able to tell by whose advice the substitution was 
made. I cannot recollect. It may be have been one or two per- 
sons. My impression is that it was a gradual thing. 

14th. Did Dr. Morton ever, to your knovv^ ledge, perform an 
unsuccessful experiment with ether ? 

Ans. Not to my knowleilge. 

loth. What, as far as you could observe, was his conduct in the 
use of ether, as regards care and skill, considering the then state 
of the art ? 

Ans. It was very proper and cautious, as far as I recollect. It 
certainly was not used in such profusion by him as we use it now. 

16th. Please state all you have known or seen of Dr. C. T. 
Jackson in connexion with the ether experiments, or discovery, in 
order of time. 

Ans. The first time I ever heard of his connexion with it, was 
previously to the amputation of the leg by Dr. Hay ward. Pre- 
viously to the first two experiments I had not heard Dr. Jackson's 
name mentioned, I am sure. As far as I recollect, it was about a 
week after the first two cases which I have mentioned, when it 
was rumored that Dr. Jackson had some connexion with it, that 
that he was interested with Morton in the patent. That is my 
impression about it. The first time I ever saw Dr. Jackson at the 
hospital, at an operation, after the introduction of the use of ether 
there, was the 2d of January, 1847. On that day I amputated 
Dr. Jack- the leg of a female. Dr. Jackson then appeared in the operating 
son's first room with a bag containing oxygen gas under his arm. He sta- 
at ^th^e ^hos- ^^^ to me there, that we should always have oxygen gas prepared 
pital. ' and ready in case oi accident in the employment of ether, and he 
feared that some accident would take place in the use of it. I am 
positive as to this day and this occurrence from examining the re- 
cords of the hospital, and from my own private record of opera- 
tions. 

17th. Was or not this interview of January 2d, 1847, the first 
time you had seen him in connexion with the use of ether ? 

Ans. Yes, it was, and I had been present at all the operations 
from the commencement to that time. 

]8th. What was done with the oxygen? Of what use was 
it ? 

Ans. No use was made of it. I never kriew it to be used. It 
would supply that portion of the atmospheric air which is wanting 
in cases of asphyxia, still I never knew it to be used. 

19th. Was Dr. Jackson present at any operation vidth ether at 

the hospital before January 2d ? If he had been, would you or 

not be likely to knovr it ? 

^^^ Ans. He was not present. If he had been 1 should have been 

likely to known of it. I am positive on that point. I have been in 



359 

the habit of mentioning that circumstance from the time of the first 
discovery of ether, and therefore it is fixed in my mind. It is not «Sli 
a thing which I recollect now for the first time as having occurred 
six years ago. I am sure of it. 

20th. When you say first heard of Dr. Jackson as connected 
with the ether, between October 17th and November 7th, was it 
in any other, and w^hat, connexion than that of the patent ? 

Ans. It was not. I did not know of it in any other way. 

21st. At the first two experiments at the hospital, had anything, 
and what, occurred to lead you to suppose or suspect that Dr. 
Jackson had any connexion with the thing ? If there had, would 
you have noticed it ? Why ? 

Ans. Not the least. I did not know that Dr. Jackson had any 
thing to do with it in the least. I considered Dr. Morton as the 
only man who had any connexion w4th it. If anything had oc- 
curred I should have noticed it, because it was a very interesting 
and absorbing subject, and everything connected with it I should 
have noticed. 

22d. Did Dr. Jackson ever claim, in your presence, to be the 
discoverer of the anaesthetic power of ether ? When ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that he ever did in my presence, not till 
a long time afterwards, when it was well known that he was a 
claimant. 

23d. To your knowledge, were any experiments performed at 
the hospital at the request of Dr Jackson ? 

Ans. No sir, not to my knowledge. 

24th. How as to the best of your information and belief? 

Ans, I have no recollection of hearing of any. 

25th. What is your experience of nitrous oxide gas as an anses- 
thetic agent ? 

Ans. 1 have had no experience with it as an anaesthetic agent. 

26th. Have you ever known it to be used as such ? So far as 
you know, what is its value as an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I have never known it to be used as such. From my ex- 
perience in seeing it very frequently inhaled, and inhaling it my- 
self, r should think it was of no value. 

27th. Suppose that before any dental or surgical experiment had 
been performed under the effect of ether, a person had inhaled it 
as an antidote to chlorine gas, and found that it relieved the pain 
in his throat, felt giddiness and exhiliration, followed by numb- 
ness in the feet and legs, with a swimming or floating sensation, 
accompanied by an absence of sensation, even of the chair under 
him, that unconsciousness for about one quarter of an hour follow- 
ed, on returning to consciousness felt numbness in all the limbs, 
then sensation had gradually returned, and the pain in the throat 
with it. Supposing this to have been done in private, and no ex- 
periment made with an instrument producing pain, what do you 



360> 

consider, as to the power of ether and its safety, was then discov- 
ered ? 

Ans. I should consider that it proved insensibility to surround- 
See Bige- ing objects. If I had witnessed that as the first experiment, I 
low, ante. ^^^^ consider it doubtful as to its safety. I don't see that the 
person could have discovered anything more than that he was in- 
sensible to pain in the throat at the time. It did not prove that 
he was insensible to pain from an injury, because he had none in- 
flicted upon him. I should think he would have doubted the 
salety of it — been fearful of the result. 

28th. Could he or not have inferred that he would not feel a sur- 
gical operation ? 

Ans. If he was investigating that subject to know^ whether he 
would annul the pain of a surgical operation, or of extracting a 
tooth, he would be probably led to it ; but if he was taking it to 
relieve the pain from inhaling a noxious gas, I should not think 
it probable that he would be led to that inference. 

29th. Please explain what you mean by being " led to it." Do 
you or not mean that he established it as a scientific deduction; or 
how otherwise ? 

Ans. I mean that if he had been in pursuit of that object, he 
would have inferred from its producing insensibility at that time 
that he would have been insensible to a surgical operation. I do 
not mean that he would have established it as a scientific induc- 
tion, unless he had some painful experiment tried upon him — been 
injured by an instrument or a puncture. 

30th. What would have the scientific value of any inference, or 
guess, or opinion, as to insensibility to a surgical operation from 
the premises stated in the 27th interrogatory ? 

Ans. I don't see any, except that he was insensible to his chair. 
I don't see that anything could be derived from that. 

olst. Could or not the same effects described in the 27th inter- 
1^^^ rogatory, be produced, entirely or substantially, by other vapors, 
gasses, or drugs, or liquors, which would yet fail under the test 
of a surgical operation ? 

Ans. Certainly ; the same state of insensibility could have heen 
1^^^ produced by many other agents. Opium I have seen taken to the 
amount of twelve grains before a surgical operation, producing 
perfect stupor, but not insensible to pain. 

32d. Is, or not, '^insensibility" a term of degrees, as used in 
physiological science ? Is it confined to that degree of insensi- 
bility which was proved in 1846 to be produced by ether ? 

Ans. It is a term of degrees, as used in physiological science ; 
a part of the body may be insensible to one degree of pain, but 
not to another. It is not so confined. 

33d. If, before the ether discovery, you had seen a statement 
that a person had become insensible under the effect of ether, no 



361 

painful instrument being used, should you have inferred that total 
insensibility which was proved in 1846 ? 

Ans. I should oiot, even at this time, unless I had tried the ex- 
periment upon him. 

34th. Take again, if you please, the case stated in th 27th in- 
terrogatory. Could the person have inferred that the ether 
would operate on persons generally as it did on him, or on him- 
self at all times alike ? 

Ans. I should not think he could, without repeated experi- 
ments. 

35tb. Could he have known whether he had or had not been 
in a perilous state during the quarter hour of unconsciousness ? 

Ans. No, sir, he could not. 

36th. Is it or not known that vapors, gasses and drugs gene- 
rally affect different persons differently as to sleep, or excitability, 
or unconciousness, and also as to the safety of administration ? 

Ans. It certainly is. 

37th. From your experience, if a person under the effect of 
ether, and insensible to a painful surgical operation, should yet be 
wide awake and talking, and excitable, would it follow that he 
had the proper use of his reasoning powers, and was in a sane 
state of mind ? 

Ans. It would not, for I have often seen a patient talk during 
a surgical operation under the influence of ether, and in a half an 
hour afterwards have no recollection of it. It is a very common 
occurrence. I put no confidence in what a person says to me 
while under the influence of ether, or for a half an hour afterwards, 
although to a bystander they appear to be talking rationally, yet 
they themselves recollect nothing of it. That to me is almost a 
daily occurrence, or whenever I give ether. 

38th. How far do you consider the cerebral affection under 
ether to be contemporaneous with the insensibility to pain in the 
nerves of sensation ? 

Ans. The affection of the brain, the insensibility of the mind, 
comes on first, before the nerves of sensation are affected. That 
we know by the patient being unable to answer questions, and yet 
are not insensible to the knife. The preparation for the operation, 
or the insensibility to pain, is generally ascertained by lifting the 
arm. If it drops powerless, we consider them insensible to pain. 
If the arm is rigid, or rather if there is rigidity of the muscles, we 
never commence the operation. The restoration to sensibility oc- 
curs always before the restoration of the powers of the mind. 

39th. If a person is sufficiently conscious to continue to inhale 
ether from a handkerchief without aid, and note his own sensa- 
tions, is he suflficiently etherized to bear a surgical operation ? 

Ans. Decidedly not. 

40th. What is your opinion, from your experience, of chloro- 
form as an anaesthetic agent ? 



362 

Ans. I think it is a dangerous agent, but capable of producing 
insensibility as readily as ether. The only cases which I have ever 
seen myself where there was danger from inhaling chloroform, 
was at the hospital a^month since, where two patients, by the in- 
halation of chloroform, were brought very speedily into a state of 
asphyxia. One of them died. In these cases, however, chloroform 
was given in too large a quantity by mistake, mistaking it for 
chloric ether. Chloroform I consider a dangerous agent, because' 
where it has been carefully used, there have been no less than 
thirty deaths from it in Europe and this country. From the e 
of ether I have heard of no fatal accident. 

41st. What is your opinion, from your experience of the last 
six years, of sulphuric ether as an ansesthetic agent, as to its 
safety and efficiency? 

Ans. I think it is perfectly safe to be given in all cases, to 
persons of all ages from infancy to old age. I think it is always 
capable of producing temporary insensibility to any degree of 
pain, and I never use it without considering it the greatest boon 
ever conferred uoon humanity. 

42d. Is there any degree of pain or torture which has yet been 
found to exceed the ansesthetic power of ether ? 

Ans. I do not know of any ; I have never seen it fail. 

Cross-interrogatories hy A. Jackson, jr., cou?iselfor Dr. Charles 

T. Jackson. 

1st. In answer to the 2d interrogatory, you have spoken of 
knowing Dr. Jackson. Whether or not you have known him 
intimately? Whether you visited him in his laboratory or family? 

Ans. I should not say intimately. I have not visited him in 
his family. I have been in his laboratory when business called 
me there; not very often. He has not visited me; he may have 
been in my study. 

2d. In answer to the 7th interrogatory, you say that Dr. 
Morton first administered ether in private surgical practice. Can 
you state how often — the number of times? 

Ans. I cannot. 

'Sd. Will you please describe the operating room or theatre at 
the hospital ? 

Ans. It is arranged like an amphitheatre, the seats rising half 
round, one above the other. The operating area is in the centre. 
In the rear opposite the seats are cases containing the surgical in- 
struments. On each side of the area, at the termination of the 
seats, is an entrance. Before entering the door on each side which 
leads to the area, a passage way on the east side leads under the 
seats up a flight stairs to the highest seat, through which the 
students enter to vritness the operation. On the west side a pas- 
sage way leads under the seats not having any communication with 



363 

the operating room, but is used as a bed-room. There it was that 
Dr. Morton went in. 

4th. If a person should come in late, to what part, if any par- 
ticular part, would he go in the operating theatre? 

Ans. He would go through the entrance on the east side up 
these stairs, or he would enter by the west side into the area, 
which has a communication on that side with the seats. This 
area, I should have observed before, has a partition or fence from 
the end of the lowest seat, over to the wall on tke opposite side, 
having a door through which the patients pass. This was placed 
there originally to prevent spectators coming into the area during 
an operation. 

5th. In answer to the 19th interrogatory, you speak of Dr. 
Jackson as not present at any operation when ether was ad- 
ministered before the 2d of January. Whether or not you re- 
member that he was present at one time with Dr. ReofFroy, when 
ether was administered early after its introduction? 

Ans. I do not. I never saw him there at that time. 

6th. Can you state whether or not Dr. Jackson was present at 
the hospital with Benjamin Silliman, jr., at any early operation 
under the influence of ether? 

Ans. I cannot. 

7th. Whether or not you remember the case of Fanny Abbott, 
one of the early surgical cases at the hospital after tke introduc- 
tion of ether, whose leg was amputated on account of careous 
ajSfection of the bones of the ankle? 

Ans, I do. I amputated that leg on the second day of Janu- 
ary, 1847. 

8th. in answer to 19th interrogatory, you speak of Dr. Jackson 
as not being present at any operation at the hospital, where ether 
was used for inhalation before the 2d of January. Whether or 
not you mean not present before that time around the operating 
table, or in the operating area ? or not in the operating theatre 
any where? 

Ana. I mean not in the operating theatre any where, as a spec- 
tator or assistant. 

9th. Will you please state about how many persons were usually 
present in the operating theatre? 

Ans. During the lectures, about one hundred. Before the lec- 
tures twenty-five to fifty. 

10th. Whether the period when the lectures were given em- 
braced any, and if any, what portion of the tirue from October '46, 
to January '47? 

Ans. The lectures began the first Wednesday in November, 
and continued four months. 

11th. Whether, at the operation of January 2, 1847, you 
remember whether or not an inhaler was used in the administering 
of ether ? Can you state who administered ether at that date? 



364 

Ans. I cannot remember ; probably one of the surgeons ad- 
ministered it. 

12th. Whether or not you remember that C. F. Hayward, 
then house surgeon, administered it ? 

Ans. I cannot remember precisely on that point. When we 
first administered ether, it was generally administered by the 
surgeons alone, as we were more cautious in its administration* 
not being so familiar with its effects as we now are. 

13th. Whether Dr. Jackson then stated to you that he had 
brought the oxygen gas to be used in case of asphyxia ? 

Ans. He did. 

14th. Whether or not you remember that Dr. Jackson then 
spoke of the use of the sponge ? Whether or not, if an inhaler 
was then used, a probe was thrust in to keep the atmosphejic 
air- valve open ? 

Ans. I do not remember whether Dr. Jackson spoke of the 
use of the sponge, or whether a probe was thrust in to keep the 
atmospheric air-valve of the inhaler open. I have seen it done 
on other occasions. 

15th. Whether or not, during the first few months when ether, 
by inhalation to prevent pain, was used at the hospital, being 
administered by means of an apparatus, asphyxia, partial or 
otherwise, was sometimes produced thereby ? 

Ans. It was. 

16th. Whether or not among the surgeons various theories 
have prevailed, or still do prevail, as to the condition a person 
is in after a due inhalation of ether? 

Ans. I do not know that there is now any difference of opin- 
ion ; I believe there has been heretofore. Various papers have 
been written on that subject, to account for the action of ether 
upon the brain. 

17th. Whether pr not, during the first few months of such 
use of ether at the hospital, one theory or opinion was, that 
asphyxia was the inevitable concomitant of etherization ? 

Ans. No sir ; I do not think it was. 

18th. Whether or not at one time daring the period of the 
early administration of ether at the hospital, the opinion pre- 
vailed that the effects of ether — the insensibility to pain thereby 
produced — depended on partial asphyxia ? 

Ans. I don't recollect of any such opinion prevailing. 

19th. Whether or not, during the early use of ether, the fact 
that the blood from the wounds of etherized patients was darker 
than from wounds when ether was not used, was pointed out as 
one indication tending to support some theory on this point ? If 
so, to what theory ? 

Ans. It was observed ; I can't answer to what particular 
theory that pointed. 



365 

30th. Whether or not, at the operation of the 2d of January, 
you recollect that in that case the fact was pointed out that the 
blood was not darker than in cases where ether was not used ? 

Ans. I do not. 

21st. Whether or not one theory was, that ether produced a 
great excitement of the nervous energy, so as to produce a col- 
lapse of all nervous sensibility ? 

Ans. I don*t know. 

22d. Whether or not, at one time, the theory was, that the 
state induced by ether was nothing but dead drunkenness ? 

Ans. I don't know. 

23d. Whether or not one theory was, or is, that etherization 
is an unoxgenated state of the blood, produced by the anaesthetic 
agent used ? 

Ans. That is the state of the blood in case of asphyxia from 
the use of ether ; but whether it is when asphyxia does not pre- 
vail, I am doubtful ; because, when asphyxia does not prevail, 
the blood from the arteries is florid ; when the patient is in 
the state of asphyxia, the blood from the arteries is dark colored, 
like that from the veins. 

24th. In 15th interrogatory, the question is as to the care and 
skill of Dr. Morton in the use of ether. Whether you were ever 
present in Dr. Morton's rooms at any administration of ether, in 
the fall of 1846 and the winter succeeding ? 

Ans. I was present in his room with his partner or assistant, 
D. P. Wilson, to have something done to my own teeth by Dr. 
Wilson, and saw the ether administered for the extraction of a 
tooth once or twice. 

25th. Whether or not, in reference to your answer to 7th in- 
terrogatory, you intended to be understood to say that, so long- 
as inhalers were used. Dr. Morton always attended to administer 
ether ? 

Ans. No, sir ; 1 don't know that he did. 

26th. How many times did you ever see Dr. Morton adminis- 
ter ether, both at the hospital and in any cases of private prac- 
tice, in which he may have administered it ? 

Ans. Not more than six times, but I am uncertain as to that. 
After we became accustomed to it at the hospital, we used it 
ourselves. 

27th. In answer to the 16th interrogatory, it is said that the 
first time you heard of Dr. Jackson in connexion with the ether 
discovery, was about a week after the two cases at the hospital — 
the cases of October 16 and 17, 1846. Can you now state what 
it was which you then heard on this point ? 

Ans. I can state nothing more particularly than I have doni; 
in that answer. 

28th. Were you present at the meeting of the American 



366 

Academy, November S, 1846. when this matter of etherization 
was announced ? 

Ans. I was not. 

29th. Whether or not you heard from Dr. Warren anything 
respecting any letter to him from Dr. C. T. Jackson, respecting 
ether, or the discovery, in the fall or winter of 1846-7. 

Ans. I do not recollect at this time. 

80th. How as to your impression or belief on this point ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of it ; I might or I might not ; if 
I did, it has escaped my mind. 

31st. In reference to the answer to the 11th interrogatory, the 
inquiry now is, if asphyxia, produced from want of atmospheric 
air, is not dangerous ? 

Ans. I do not consider, when asphyxia is produced from in- 
haling ether now, that there is any cause of alarm ; I have seen 
it so often, and they always recover from it, that I do not feel 
alarmed. 

32d. Whether or not the asphyxia produced by inhaling ether 
is not by reason of too little atmospheric air for the patient ? 

Ans. Undoubtedly it is ; that is the cause of asphyxia. 

o3d. Whether or not, in reference to the answer to 12th in- 
terrogatory, the reason that asphyxia is produced where the 
sponge is used, is not because the sponge is pressed so close to 
the mouth and nostrils, that the patient cannot get atmospheric 
air ? 

Ans. It may be in some cases ; I have seen it produced also 
where it was not pressed to the mouth and nostrils ; there seems 
to be a diiierence in the susceptibility of persons taking ether ; 
I cannot give any reason for its occurring in those cases where 
the sponge is not pressed to the mouth and nostrils. 

34th. If a person ignorant of medicine, administers a remedy 
prescribed and directed by a regular physician, in accordance 
with directions which he had received from the regular physician, 
who is responsible for the effect which follows — the physician or 
the person administering the remedy ? 

Ans. The physician, I should say, of course. 

36th. Whether or not. Dr. Morton, in September, 1846, was 
admitted to practice, or had got his degree in dental surgery 
which gives him the title of "Doctor?" 

Ans. I think not, but I am not certain ; if the only M. D. 
which he has now is the one which he received at Washington, 
he had not it at that time. 

36th. During your acquaintance with Dr. Morton, has his 
knowledge, or want of knowledge of scientific matters, of ether, 
and the various kinds, and the properties of ether, come under 
your observation — if aye, what is his knowledge of tliem ? 



367 

Ang. They have not come under my observation ? 

37th. Was Dr. Morton an educated man ? 

Ans. I don't know. 

88th. Have yoa ever witnessed any experiments showing the 
use of sulphuric ether on quadrupeds, such as dogs, cats, &c. — 
if aye, has it or not been the case with them, that while recover- 
ing from the effects of ether, for some 5, 10, 15 or 20 minutes 
before they could walk, leap or run, that they would crawl about, 
dragging their hinder extremities, their hinder quarters, after -s^JI 
them ? 

Ans. I have used it myself in one case which I remember par- 
ticularly — the dislocation of the shoulder of a dog — which was 
immediately reduced under its influence ; I never saw but this 
one experiment, and 1 don't recollect that the effects inquired 
about took place in this case. 

39th. Will you please state the proportion of nitrogen in the 
air compared with that of oxygen — whether nitrogen is merely 
of use in nature to dilute the oxygen ? 

Ans. The proportion is seventy-seven parts of nitrogen to 
twenty of oxygen, and a fraction of aqueous vapor ; it is so pro- 
portioned as to be fit for respiration. 

40th. Whether in breathing pure oxygen you breathe about 
four times as much oxygen as if you breathe common air ? 

Ans. We do. 

41st. Suppose a patient dangerously asphyxiated, breathing 
common air will restore him ; will not pure oxygen inhaled into 
the cells of the lungs operate in restoring the asphyxiated patient 
about four times as soon as common air 't 

Ans. I should think it would, upon theory ; I have never seen 
the experiment tried ; it would undoubtedly restore him sooner. 

42d. Whether at the first operation at the hospital, where the 
unknown agent was used, on the 16th of October, cascarilla bark 
was burned on the stove in the operating room ? 

Ans. Not that I know of; I have no recollection of it. 

43d. Are you acquainted with the odor of the essence, or eau 
de millefleurs f 

Ans. I am. 

44th. Was not thifs mingled with the preparation first used at 
the hospital on the 16th of October ? 

Ans. I do not know that it was. 

45th. Whether or not the odor you perceived of some sub- 
stance mingled with the ether, was like, or similar to that of 
" eau de millefleurs V 

Ans. I don't recollect. 

46th. What led to the opinion that cascarilla bark was min- 
gled with the ether? 

Ans. In former years I had made great use of cascarilla bark 



368 

in certain ca.ies of disease which often occurred to me, and I was 
familiar with the drug ; I also had used it in making up of pas- 
tilea to burn, and therefore discovered its odor at that time. 

47th. Can a man ever know, after awaking, whether or not he 
has been in a perilous state during sleep, or during a period of 
unconsciousness ? 

Ans. I think he cannot. 

48th. Might not a man who has been unconscious for a brief 
interval, knowing, on recovering his consciousness, that he had 
not received any harm, infer that he had not been in danger ? 

Ans. I should suppose he might. 

49th. Must not the idea of insensibility to pain have preceded 
any suggestion of the use of ether for that purpose ? 

Ans. I should think it must. 

50 th. Did not the idea and suggestion in 1846 immediately 
lead to the use of ether ? 

Ans. I suppose it did. 

51st. Has not the idea or suggestion of Dr. Jackson's, of in- 
sensibility to pain in surgical operations (supposing him to have 
made such suggestion to Dr. Morton on the 30th of September, 
1846,) proved to be true ? 

Ans. Yes, I suppose it has. 

52d. In your opinion, then, was not this idea of great practi- 
cal importance ? 

Ans. Yes. 

53d. Cannot a discovery be made unless the person who makes 
it has been previously in pursuit of the end reached ? 

Ans. He need not necessarily have been in pursuit of it to 
have made the discovery. 

54th. Is not a man devoted to scientific researches likely to 
draw inferences more or less probable, from any and every ob- 
servation, casual or otherwise, he may make, which point more 
or less clearly to a scientific truth ? 

Ans. I suppose he is. 

55th. Newton perceived that the diamond and water had a 
peculiar efi'ect on light. Could he or not infer the existence of 
an inflammable substance in them ? 

Ans. I don't know. 

56th. Newton perceived that the apple fell. Could he or not 
infer a law by wluch the apple was drawn to the earth, to wit, 
the law of gravitation ? 

Ans. Yes, and he did. 

57th. Is it fair, reasonable or just, to the authors of scientific 
discoveries, to express opinions, or argue against the probability 
of their having drawn certain conclusions, or inferred cortain 
truths, because men of dissimilar minds, and devoted to differeot 



369 

pursuits, would not perhaps liave drawn the same conclusions, or 
made the same inferences ? 

Ans. I don't wish to give an answer to that question. 

58th. Whether or not any person can be the author of a dis- 
covery in the inductive sciences, without either originating any 
new idea, or devising the means of establishing the truth of a 
conjecture, whether more or less probable, previously brought to 
view by another person ? 

Ans. I don't think he can. 

59th. Whether or not you are familiar with the facts con- 
nected with the early history of the ether discovery ? 

Ans. I have read all the publications on the subject. 

60th. Whether or not you can specify any new idea connected 
with this discovery first originated by Dr. Morton, or can state 
any new experiment first devised by him, by which that discovery 
was established ? 

Ans. I know of nothing, but his first experiments which I 
witnessed at the hospital. 

61st. Whether or not, in your opinion, the purity of the sul- 
phuric ether from alcohol and acids, and the due admixture of 
atmospheric air, are not among the most important particulars 
embraced in the discovery of etherization? 

Ans. Those are the most important particulars in the safe 
administration of ether. 

62d. Admitting that, as stated by Mr. Bowditch, in his vindica- 
tion of his hospital report of 1848, Dr. Jackson did, on the 30th 
of September, 1846, state to Dr. Morton, before Morton extracted 
the tooth of Eben Frost, on the same day, that Dr. Jackson 
pointed out to him the two conditions in the inhalation of ether : 
first, a due admixture of atmospheric air ; second, purity of the 
ether from acids and alcohol, could, in your opinion, Dr. Morton 
on that extraction of a tooth, and on those painless operations 
that followed, set up the title of exclusive discovery ? 

Ans. I should sa^ not. 

63d. Is it your o pinion that Franklin, who made partial expe- 
riments, and suggested, but did not first perform a decisive 
experiment, was the discoverer of the identity of electricity and 
lightning, or Coiffier, who first performed that decisive experi- 
ment as devised and suggested by Franklin ? 

Ans. I don't pretend to decide. 

64th. Do you concur with Whewell, the historian of the induc- 
tive sciences, in the following opinion of his :: ''I do not concede 
that experiments of verification, made after a discovery has been 
already brought to view by one person, and devised by the dis- 
coverer, and committed by him for performance to another, give 
the operator a right to claim the discovery as his own ?" 

Ans. I have not formed any opinion upon that subject, and 
24 



370 

must decline to answer such questions. I only come to state 
facts, and not to act as a judge. 

65tli. How soon after the 16th of October, 1846, was any 
.question made, raised, or discussed, as to wlio was the discoverer 
of etherization ? 

Ans. From the length of time which has elapsed, I cannot 
recollect. It is not fixed in my mind. 

66th. So far as you know, from the time there was any ques- 
tion made, raised, or discussed, on this point, has not Dr. Charles 
T. Jackson always, on all lit occasions, stated and declared him- 
self to be the discoverer? 

Ans. I believe he has. 

67th. Vv'hether you recollect that the operation of il^ovember 
7th, the amputation was to have been performed on Saturday^ 
October 31st, and was postponed to Saturday, November 7th ? 

Ans. I cannot recollect myself, but I have heard that stated 
by some of the surgeons within a year. 

68th. Whether or not, all tlie medical authorities known to 
you, in September, 1846, who had expressed any opinion in re- 
gard to inhaling sulpliuric ether vapor, to such an extent as to 
produce unconsciousness, did not pronounce it highly dangerous 
so to do 'i 

Ans. I can't give a decided opinion whetlier all had. Some 
authorities had pronounced it dangerous. 

69th. Whether or not, to your knowledge, any person, previ- 
ously to the fall of 1846, ever suggested the inhalation of sul- 
phuric ether vapor, as a means of preventing pain in surgical 
operations ? 

Ans. I never heard of any one. 

70th. Whether or not any person to your knowledge, before 
the fall of 1846, ever advanced the opinion that it was safe to 
inhale sulphuric ether vapor, to such an extent as to produce 
unconsciousness ? 

Ans. Not that I know of. I did not know^ anything about 
ether as anaesthetic, or hear anything about it, unti] the day of 
the first operation. 

71st. Whether or not Pcreii-a's j^Iateria IMedica is a work 
"which persons who are not phyigicians in actual practice, or 
apothecaries, would be likely to purchase, or to have in their 
possession ? w^hether or not it was first published in 1889 ? 

An«. I should think persons not physicians would not. Apo- 
thecaries might. I do not know whether it was first published itx. 
1839. 

72d. Is the same state of insensibility which the inhalation of 
pure sulphuric ether induces produced by any other vapors with 
which you are acquainted 1 Is it produced by drugs, such as 
opium ? 



371 

Ans. It is not. A state of insensibility from alcoliolj pro- 
duces the same eftects, but not from opium. I once was called 
down to the hospital to amputate the leg of a man who had been 
run over by the cars. He was in a state of beastly intoxication. 
He was so much intoxicated that I thought it unsafe to admin- 
ister ether to him. After the operation, he declared that he did 
not know tliat it had been performed, and also that it gave him 
no pain. 

T3d. Have you ever inhaled ether in your own person so as 
to produce unconsciousness ? 

Ans. I have not. 

74th. In one place in this deposition it is stated that one part 
of the body may be insensible to one degree of pain and not to 
another. Slay not, under the effects of inhaled ether, the nerves 
of sensation be paralysed and at the same time the party so para- 
lysed be to such an extent conscious as to know and remark on 
what is doing in the room ? 

Ans. I have seen such cases. 

75th. Have you known of cases where a patient under the 
influence of ether, had possession of his intellectual facnlties ? 

Ans. I once knew a case of a young lady who was operated 
on, who had the sense of touch existing, and yet did not teel the 
pain of the operation. She could distinguish a ring placed in 
her hand. That was an unconnnon case. 

76th. Have you known of cases where, after enough had been 
given to produce unconsciousness, where after consciousness re- 
turned, and while insensibility to pain continued, that the patient 
had possession of his intellectual faculties ? 

Ans. I have not. 

77th. Did you know that Bouisson, in his work on etherization, 
states, '^ that tlie integrity of the intelligence is preserved while 
the sensibility is paralyzed," in some cases ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

78th. Has it not happened, over and over again, that parturi- 
tion has taken place without any sense of pain wliere perfect 
consciousness continued? 

Ans. I have had such a case, 

79th. Suppose it were known to you that the nerves of sensa- 
tion in the human body were paralyzed, should you not state that 
you knew that the body could feel no pain of a surgical operation 
as an inference from such fact ? 

Ans. Not until I had repeatedly tried the experiment after- 
wards. 

80th. Supposing it to be stated that the fact noticed by a gen- 
tleman was that persons who had inhaled ether had been for a 
few moments deprived of sensibility, do you hold this to be a 
physiological fact which one could not verify on himself ? 



372 

Ans. I don't think lie could. 

81st. Suppose that a person knew that by reason of a certain 
process he was insensible to pain in his nerves of sensation in 
his throat, could he not infer from this fact, that, if he repeated 
the same process, he would become insensible to pain produced 
in another part of his body ; as for instance, a burn, or blister, 
on his arm? 

Ans. I don't think he would, unless he continued to repeat the 
experiment for that purpose — I will state a case. A young gen- 
tleman, ten years since, who is now a physician, was inhaling 
ether for amusement, as was the custom at Harvard College. He 
took enough to make him so insensible that he fell upon the floor. 
In falling he cut his head badly. On recovering he was unaware 
that he had injured himself at all. But this did not lead him to 
any farther experiment. 

82d. Suppose a painless extraction of a tooth to have been 
performed by means of a certain process, the tendency of which 
process was to annul pain in dental and surgical operations, 
could you not infer from this fact, that all dental and surgical 
operations requiring a brief insensibility to pain might be 
painless ? 

Ans. Yes. I should be inclined to, certainly. 

83d. Will you be kind enough to state the component parts of 
pure rectified sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I do not know them — I mean I do not remember the 
proportions. It is composed of sulphuric acid and alcohol. 

S-ith. Is not the etherized state generally one of agreeable 
dreams ? is there any stupor or congestion of the brain ? 

Ans. That is various in various people ; often it is so, at other 
times there is a stupor ; the visible effects of ether are entirely 
various in different persons. 

85th. In surgical cases, where sulphuric ether, by inhalation, 
has been used, has there been, generally, headache, or any cere- 
bral symptoms, after the inhalation, or unpleasant effects from 
the use of it ? 

Ans. In many cases there are ; in many cases there are not ; 
I don't think such are the general effects. 

86th. Is there any muscular excitement in a patient, if pure 
sulphuric ether is given, by inhalation, at once, in a large vol- 
ume ? 

Ans. There often is ; it is not so generally. 

87th. Suppose that a person is under the influence of liquors, 
but has not reached the point of dead drunkenness, can you, in 
most cases, make hiin dead drunk by the inhalation of ether ? 

Ans. I never tried the experiment, nor saw it tried, but I 
jshe^uld think it not unlikely. 



373 

88th. Is it not a fact tliat persons partially drunk -vvitli alcohol 
cannot, in most cases, be etherized ? 

Ans. It is difficult t© etherize intemperate men ; I cannot say 
how it would be as to persons partially intoxicated ? 

89th. Whether you remember that after an operation during 
the early use of ether, at the hospital, in the fall and winter of 
1846-'7, it frequently happened that black blood had been seen 
from the arteries of the etherized patients, that Dr. Warren and 
others of the surgeons, in remarks to the class of students, 
pointed out the black or darker blood, in connexion with what 
was said of the asphyxiated state of the patient ? 

Ans. I do remember it. 

90th. Whether or not you consider that the operations made in 
the fall of 1846, at the Massachusetts General Hospital, are an im- 
portant part in the discovery of anaesthesia, by inhalation of pure 
sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I certainly think they had a strong connexion with it, 
because if the operations had not been performed the discovery 
would not have been made, in my opinion. 

91st. Whether or not the operations at the hospital on the 
16th and 17th of October were regp.rded of great moment, or 
whether the operation of November Tth, the amputation in Alice 
Mohan's case, was regarded as a great and conclusive test ? 

Ans. The first operations were regarded m ^f q-^eat moment, 
and the amputation as still greater and con:" 

92d. Why, and how, is chloroform dange ' •^itioii? 

Ans. It seems to be by suddenly depress^!: powers, 

it being a more powerful agent than sulphuric ethcj\ 

93d. Whether chloric ether is a solution of chloroform in al- 
cohol ? 

Ans. That is a question I can't undertake to decide, but leave 
it for apothecaries and chemists. I don't know much about it. 

94th. Whether chloric ether is not to some extent, like chloro- 
form, dangerous ? 

Ans. I think it is. 

Direct^ resumed hy Mr. Dana. 

1st. Is your answer to the 51st cross-interrogatory made on 
the assumption that he suggested to Dr. Morton the total insen- 
sibility afterwards proved ? if it had been merely a suggestion of 
some degree of insensibility or unconsciousness, would it have re- 
quired any proof? 

Ans. My answer was made on that assumption. If it had 
been a suggestion of some degree of insensibility or unconscious- 
ness, it would not have required any proof, because that was 



knoivn before. I had used it myself to relieve a cough, by hold- 
ing it and breathing it from a saucer. 

2(1. Was it, or not, knovrn before September. 1846, that ether 
could be inhaled to a greater or less degree of unconsciousness, 
and no injurious result follow ? Had there been such cases ? 

Ans. The books stated that it could be. It is so stated in 
Pereira, there had been such cases. As I have said before, it 
had been used in Cambridge by the students often. 

♦3d. In aiiSn'er to the 60th interrogatory, do you confine your- 
self to your own knowledge? or do you give an opinion on what 
you'have read and heard ? 

Ans. I confine myself to my own knowledge. 
Br. Jack- 4th. Please refer to your answer to the 62d cross-interrogatory. 
son's claim If J)y^ Jackson, at the time, did not know, or believe, or expect 
other than tlie then known and usual results to follow, but only 
advised Dr. Morton of the best mode of using ether, and the 
bcBi kind, and Dr. Morton did not act as his agent, or jointly 
ivith him, but on his own responsibility, what claim had Dr. 
Jackson as a joint discoverer ? 

Ans. I should think he would have the claim which a person 
^^^ would have who had got that information from books nnd com- 
municated it to another. 

5th. Is your answer to the 62d cross-interrogatory made on 
the supposition that Dr. Morton acted in the experiments as the 
agent of, or jointly with, Dr. Jackson, and that Dr. Jackson 
anticipated the discovery which followed ? 

Ans. My answer was upon the supposition that he acted in 
the matter as the agent for Dr. Jackson, without going into the 
merits of the case, as to whether he did or not. 

6th. Do you confine your answer to the 66th cross-interroga- 
tory to your own knoAvledge ? or do you give an opinion on what 
you have road and heard ? 

Ans. I do not mean by that answer to say that he has always 
done so from the first, but that, generally speaking, he has made 
that claim. I won't fix any definite time. 
It grows 7tli. When he began to make his claim, did he claim the sug- 
riSrovIr*S«st;on or the full discovery. 

sy. Note Ans. I think only the suggestion. His clamis seenied to have 
ibis and see increased as the controversy continued. 

next page. g^i^^ -q^ etherized patients sometimes observe correctly objects 
about them, and recognise persons ? 

Ans. In rare cases they are able to recognise and see people 
before they become fully etherized. 

9th. Does this fact alter your opinion that they are still in an 
unsound mental state ? 

Ans. iNo, it docs not. 



375 



Gross resumed hj 3fr. Jackson. 



1st. Will joii be kind enoiigli to state wliat is referred to by 
you in your answer to the second direct resumed, as stated by 
Pereira, about the inhalation of etbor in reference to unconscious- 



ness : 



Ans. It is some time since I iiave read the case which I refer 
to in Poreira ; but it is my impression that he states that it may 
be taken for the relief from the pain of chlorine gas. 

2d, Since the sixtieth interrogatory did not require an answer 
confined to your own personal knowledge, will you be kind enough 
to state how, if at all, you should change your answer to that in- 
terrogatory, including, besides your personal knowledge, any fact 
you may have read of, heard of, or known of ? 

Ans. I had heard that Dr. Morton had tried the effects of 
ether on himself previously. 

3d. '^ Ahvays done so, from the first:" what is meant or in- 
tended by that phrase in the answer to the sixth direct resumed ? 

Ans. I do not mean from the first day the experiment was 
tried. I can't fix any time. After the controversy waxed warm, 
it is well known that I)r. Jackson laid claim to the joint discovery. 

4th. In what way "increased;" and wliat is intended by that 
answer to seventh direct resumed ? 

Ans. I mean to- say, that he has laid claim to experiments 
upon himself, and to the first discovery, which I had not seen or 
heard of at first. Por instance : his letter to Baron Humboldt — 
which I never read till within a month — gives a minute detail of 
an experiment tried upon himself, of inhaling ether, which I had 
never seen descrilied before, or heard of, although I read all his 
communications on the subject, and that of his friend, in the 
early part of the controversy. By the letter to Baron Hum- 
boldt, I mean thiit contained in the minority report of a com- 
mittee of Congress, the last year. 

5th. Can you state any onQfact now set forth by Dr. Jackson, 
in reference to the fact that he made the discovery of etheriza- 
tion, which he did not declare in the fall and winter of 184. 6-' T? 

Ans. As I have answered in the previous interrogatory, his 
minute description of the manner in which he took ether he did 
not declare in the fall and winter of 1846. If ho did, I never 
heard of them. There are other statements in that letter which 
are new to me. 

i)th. When or where did you ever hear or know that Dr. Jack- 
son stated that he was a joint discoverer, with any one, of etheri- 
zation ? 



376 

Ans. I don't know. I can't remember. I don't know that it 
was the joint discovery ; it might be the sole discovery. 

S. D. TOWNSEND. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, 1 
Suffolk county, / 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the de- 
position in perpetuam of S. D. Townsend, taken before us, upon 
the petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Two Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law. 
Boston, December 18, 1852. 



Deposition of Mr. Burnett, apothecary. 

I, Joseph Burnett, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, apothecary, of lawful age, being 
first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by 
R. H, Dana, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton : 

1st. How loDg have you resided in Boston? What is your oc- 
cupation, and how long have you followed it ? 

Ans. I have resided in Boston thirteen years at least. I am an 
apothecary, and have followed the occupation ever since I have 
been in Boston, as clerk and proprietor ; I have been proprietor 
nearly eight years. 

2d. Where is your place of business ? How long has it been 
there ? 

Ans. My place of business is No. 33 Tremont Row, in Boston, 
and I have always been there. 

8d. How long have you known Dr. Charles T. Jackson ? 

Ans. I have known him by reputation since I have been in Bos- 
ton, and personally for ten years, I should think. 

4th. Did you know anything about Dr. Wells's experiment with 
nitrous oxide ? If yea, state all you know. 

Ans. I knew that he advertised that he had such an agent. I 
next heard that his experiments were unsuccessful ; that he had 
fiaure! iiivited some physicians and scientific men to witness some experi- 
ments, which had failed. They were in Boston. My impression 
is that the place was opposite the Tremont House. 

5th. Did you hear of this at the time ? Was it or not, and how 
far, generally known? 



WellB's 



377 

Ans. I knew of it at the time. It was told to me. It was a- 

matter of general remark. 

6th. State when this was, as nearly as possible. 

Ans. I should think it was in the year 1844 or '5, one of them,. 
It was one of the passing topics of the day, which I did not fix 
in my mind. 

7th. Have you ever heard Dr. Charles T. Jackson say anything 
about this experiment of Dr. Wells's ? 

Ans. I have never heard him speak of it, to my knowledge. 
He may have made eome remark about it, but, if he did, I have 
forgotten it. I ought to have said that I don't remember it. 

oth. Were you present at the experiments at the Bromfield 
House, November 21st, 1846 ? Who administered the ether ? 
What was the operation, and who performed it ? 

Ans. I was present at the operation there, which is published, 
I believe that is the date. Dr. Morton administered the ether. 
The operation was the removal of a tumor, by Dr. Warren. Both 
of the Drs. Warren were there, and I can't state which performed 
it. I was considerably excited at the time, to witness the opera- 
tion. The one who did not operate assisted the other. I was 
watching the effects of the ether, and paying more attention to 
that than to the operation. 

9th. Was Dr. C. T. Jackson present? Did he take any part 
in the administration of the ether ? 

Ans. He was present. He did not take any part in the admin- 
istration of the ether. 

10th. Who else was present ? — how many persons in all ? 

Ans. I could not state how many were present, I should 
think eight or ten persons ; I recollect the Drs. Warren, Dr. Jack- 
son, Dr. Morton ; the others I did not know. 

11th. Did you have any, and what, conversation with Dr. Jack- 
son, at or before that time ? 

Ans. My impression is, that I walked with him to the house ; 
what our conversation was, I cannot remember. I think I called 
at his office the day before, on some matter connected with my 
own buedness, and some conversation took place about going 
there. I think he began the conversation. My impression is, 
that he invited or advised me to go, but I am not sure of it. It 
was about that time that he told me in his office of the pecuniary 
arrangements he had made with Morton. It was, I think, before 
that. He told me it was ten per cent, of the proceeds, or the 
profits, I don't remember which. We conversed very frequently 
and very freely, but I do not remember the conversations. It was 
at some later period that he told me he had a bag of oxygen whicb 
he should take to the hospital, to use in case of danger. He said 
he apprehended danger in the hands of those who used it. I 
think the remark he made was, that " they would kill somebody 



378 

^-with it." That is ail I remember with siifncient clearness to 
relate. 

12th. How long was this conversation about the bag of oxy- 
gen, after the experiment at the Bromfield House ? 

Ans. I can't state distinctly the time. My impression is, that 
it was late in the fall of '46. I am clearly of the opinion that it 
was some weeks later than the operation at the Bromfield House, 
and it might have been months. 

18th. How long have you known Dr. W. T. G. Morton? How 
near is his place of business to yours ? 

Ans. I have known him since his appearance in Boston. His 
place of business is ten or twelve doors from me. 

14th. After the ether discovery was announced, what did 
Dr. Morton do towards the general i^itroduction and defence of 
it ? What was done for or against it by the dentists and others ? 
Morton's Ans. He labored very constantly and very energetically in em- 
labors iiiploymg agents, publishing books, advertising. There was a feel- 
•of ether. ^^ ^^^ of considerable hostility, on the part of the dentists, towards 
Morton. They held meeting, or meetings, on the subject, and pub- 
lished a circular, [which I heard one of Morton's agents say he 
met with in almost every State of the Union.] The circular 
stated the agent to be ether, and advised persons to whom it was 
addressed, not to purchase the right, stating that they could use 
it freely without paying for it. 

(The part in brackets objected to .J. P. P.) 

loth. What ground did the dentist take as to the safety and 
effect of ether ? what did they do on that point ? 

Ans. At the time of its introduction, there were various opinions 
about its safety. I have heard some people say it was safe, 
and others that it was dangerous. The dentists were generally 
desirous of purchasing it, and generally considered it safe. There 
were no accidents thatlheard of. The reason attributed for call- 
ing the dentists' meeting was because Morton refused to sell 
them his right?, thinking he could control the matter in Boston, 
and they were rather provoked at that. 

16th. Do you recollect any circular of periodical publications, 
in the newspapers, or otherwise, by Dr. Flagg and others, stating 
cases, and taking ground on the subject of its safety and effect, 
and w^hat ground ? 

Ans. That is the circular which I refer to ; I don't remember to 
have seen but one, and that one was published in the newspaper, 
and signed by Dr. Flagg, Tucker, and others. I understood that 
that circular was published in different forms and distributed. 

17th. How much of Dr. Morton's time was devoted to the in- 
troduction and defence of ether, during the first six months or 
year afler its introduction ? 

Ans. I should say almost entirely. 

18th. What had been the state of his business up to that time ? 
what effect had these labors of his upon it ? 



379 

Ans. It had been at times very tloiirishing, and was I think a 
growing business. These labors of his injured his business, of 
course. He neglected it and it fell off. 

19th. Had his labors in the matter of ether any, and what effect 
on his health ? 

Ans. It injured his health and affected his whole nervous sys- 
tem, this constant excitement : it rendered him weak, so much so, 
that he was obliged to employ a physician, he took medicine at 
that time and active remedies. 

20th. Did Dr. G, G. Hayden bring you a demijohn of ether to 
be examined ? when ? what did you find it to be ? 

Ans. He did bring me a demijohn of ether to be examined. I 
remember the fact that it was brought in, shortly after the ether 
question began to excite public attention. I found it to be not good 
sulphuric ether, that is, it had water and alcohol in it. I weighed 
it and found it much heavier than pure ether. 

21st. Was there more than one such occasion ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

Cross examinaUon hy A. Jackson, Jr., Esq., Counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. How large was the demijohn referred to in answer to the 
twentieth interrogatory ? 

Ans. My impression is that it was a gallon demijohn. It might 
have been a half gallon or a two gallon. 

2d. Who brought this demijohn ? what, if anything was said 
about it, or its contents, by the bearer. 

Ans. Mr. Hayden brought it ; he asked me what it w^s. I told 
that him it smelled and tasted like sulphuric ether ; he inquired if 
I would tell him if it Avas good or pure. I then weighed it and found 
it to be not good ; he then asked for my certificate, which I gave. 

3d. What was mingled with the contents of the demijohn, if 
anything besides alcohol and. w^ater ? what examination was made 
as to the contents, if any besides what you have stated? what 
reason, if any, was given for gettii-ig a certificate from you ? how 
much ether was there in the demijohn ? 

Ans. Probably sulphuric ether was mingled with it. I did not 
analyze the ether, I only satisfied myseli that it was not good 
ether. I think one of my clerks tried litinus paper, with the 
view of seeing if there was acid in it. It is a blue paper and red- 
dens at the presence of acid. No reason was given for getting a 
certificate ; I asked for one, and Dr. Hayden laughingly'declined 
giving one. The demijohn Avas part full ; I could not say whether 
a quarter or three-quarters full ; there was considerably more in it 
than was poured out for the examination. 

4th. What, if anything, did Dr. Hayden say as to where he 
got this demijohn, or where he brought it from? 



380 

Ans. Nothing was said about it, I heard nothing said. 

5th. How many, and what, the kinds of ether ? please give 
some account of the different kinds ? 

Ans. Sulphuric ether is the most prominent. There is nitrous, 
acetic, chloric, and a great many other kinds. These are the 
kinds which are principally used. 

6th. What is chloric ether ? how made ? what of ? 

Ans. Chloric ether is distilled from chloride of lime, mixed with 
alcohol and water generally. 

7th. Whether chloric ether, is a solution of chloroform in al- 
cohol ? 

Ans. It may be, there are different ways of arriving at the same 
result. Chloroform is a concentrated chloric ether. 

8th. For the purpose of inhaling sulphuric erher, in a surgical 
case or an experiment, how much, in what sized bottle would a 
purchase ordinarily be made ? 

Ans. Sometimes half an ounce will produce the result, and 
sometimes a half a pound is required. We generally sell for the 
purpose of surgical operations or midwifery cases a pound some- 
times, and sometimes half a pound. In such cases they general!}^ 
intend to have a supply for a long operation ; the size of the bottle 
would be a half ounce bottle, fluid measure, or half a pound, 
fluid, according to the quantity vvanted ; we sell constantly bottles 
of all sizes. 

9th. Do you ever sell sulphuric ether to purchasers, for pur- 
poses of inhalation, by the demijohn? 

Ans. Yes, to physicians and dealers, and sometimes to other.?. 
though rarely. 

10th. Whether or not, when so sold, it is intended by the phy- 
sicians to use the ether so purchased ior a large number of cases 
or operations? 

Ans. Yes, undoubtedly. 

11th. Suppose a purchaser to come in and ask for ether. What 
kind of ether would he get ? Whether or not he would get sul- 
phuric ether ? Is or not sulphuric ether the common kind ? And 
whether or not this was so anterior to 1846? 

Ans. We should ask him what kind of ether he would have. 
If the messenger should not know, we should put him up sulphu- 
ric ether, so labelling it, and telling him he could exchange it if 
it was not right. This not unfrequently happens. Sulphuric 
ether is the common kind, and it was so anterior to 1846. 

12th. Whether or not, in the summer and fall of 1846, and an- 
terior thereto. Dr. Morton was in the habit of obtaining articles 
from your place, and whether or not he had a bill with you ? 

Ans. He was in such habit. Sometimes he had a bill; not 
constantly. 

13th. Is there any charge of ether, or of sulphuric ether, in 



381 

your books, or on your accounts against Dr. Morton, in the sum- 
mer or fall of 1846 ? 

Ans. I don't know. 

14th. Has or not any examination been made to find such 
charge, if there was any such? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 

15th. Do you know of any sale during that time to Dr. Morton 
of sulphuric ether ? 

Ans. I don't know of any positively, and yet I might have sold 
it to him myself, but I should not be likely to remember. 

16th. Whether you remember of any sale during that time, of 
any sulphuric ether to him ? 

Ans. I don't remember any. 

17th. At the Bromfield House, spoken of in answer to 8th 
interrogatory, whether you recollect or not that Dr. Morton came 
in late, when the patient was nearly etherized ? and that Dr. J. 
Mason Warren administered the ether to the patient ? 

Ans. I don't remember it. 

18th. Whether you remember the name of the patient ? was it 
Williston ? 

Ans. I don't remember it. 

19th. Whether you remember that when the knife was first 
used, the patient turned or rolled away from the cut ? 

Ans. He made some motion ; I thought at the time that he was 
suffering somewhat, but I very soon after heard him say that he 
knew nothing about it, but had been perfectly happy. It was 
some time before Dr. Warren could convince him that the tumor 
was gone. 

20th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson stood by the 
side of the patient, felt his pulse, and talked with him as to any 
perception of pain when the knife was used, and this after the 
patient recovered his consciousness ? 

Ans. I don't remember that. I did not stand near the patient. 

21st. Whether or not at the time spoken of by you in answer 
to 11th interrogatory. Dr. Jackson stated that the first arrange- 
ment he made with Morton, was to transfer to him, or quit claim 
to him, the right to use ether, or administer it, for the sum of five 
hundred dollars? 

Ans. He mentioned the ten per cent, as an equivalent for the 
assignment; I so understood it. Something was said by Dr. Jack- 
son about the five hundred dollars ; I should think it was not at 
this time. He stated that he had made some arrangement with 
Dr. Morton, as I supposed, but he was very much afraid he should 
not get that. These sums were named by Dr. Jackson during the 
course of the different conversations, but I do not remember veiy 
particularly their connection. The subject was frequently re- 



382 

ferred to when I called at Ms office on other business, but I took 
no note of it, and can^t remeraber distinctly. 

22d. Did he say anything of his hostility, or dislike to patents, 
in connexion with scientific matters ? 

Ans. He has suHsequently, but think he did not at that time. 

23d. In relation to the exygen, did Dr. Jackson say anything 
of its proposed use to prevent as physic? 

Ans. Be did. He spoke of it as a remedy for that. 

24th. Did he then, or had he previously, said anything to you 
in reference to the recklessness of Dr. Morton in administering- 
ether, or of any accounts or reports of disagreeable incidents, 
arising from Dr. Morton's administration of ether, which had been 
brought to his notice ? 

Ans. He had not previously, and I don't think he did then. He 
might have said it. A short time after he spoke very decidedly 
of Morton's recklessness and w-ant of knowledge in such matters. 

2oth. Whether or not, what was so said, as stated in the last 
answer, was said by Dr. Jackson in reference to Morton's way or 
mode of administering ether. 

Ans. He referred, I supposed, more particularly to that. He 
gaid he did not consider him a competent person to administer it. 

26th. Of how general remark was the matter referred to in 
the 5th interrogatory ? 

Ans. I heard it spoken of several times. It would most likely 
be spoken of in my store, more generally than in other places. 
Dentists, physicians, and others meet there frequently. 

27th. What, if anything, did you know of sales of patent 
licenses by Dr. Morton? 

Ans. I knew^ that he made several sales. He sold several 
thousand dollars worth ; from five to ten thousand dollars worth, 
and perhaps more, I should judge. He did not get his pay for 
all that he sold. I know of sales of about five thousand dollars 
worth. 

28th. What, if anything, did you learn from Morton, of the 
extent of those sales ? 

Ans. I don't remember to have heard him say anything about 
it. During the first excitement, he made the remark that his 
fortune was made, and I supposed it was too. 

29th. Did you hear from Dr. Morton, of his sending agents to 
sell licenses, and the percentage which they were to receive from 
these sales ? 

Ans. I knew that he sent agents, but did not know what ar- 
rangements they made. 

30th. Whether, or not, since your acquaintance with Dr, Mor- 
ton, you have had almost daily business intercourse with him ? 

Ans. I have up to the last year or two. 

31gt. Did you know that Dr. Morton, so long as patent licenses 
were sold, refused to sell any to the Boston dentists ? 



383 

Ans. I (lid not know anything about what he might have done 
after the circular was published ; I heard him say that he had 
them all, and meant to extract their teeth. I know he would not 
sell rights, because he meant to control the business, and had fit- 
ted up a room for the purpose. 

32d. Did you know of his statements that he was sufficient for 
the dentistry of Boston. 

Ans. I don't remember to have heard him make that statement. 

33d. Ey your answer of *• almost entirely,'' to the question of 
how" much of Dr. Morton's time was devoted to the introduction 
and defence of ether, w^hether or not you mean the defence and 
introduction undex his patent? whether you include in this phrase, 
time devoted to sales of licenses, &c. 

Ans. I mean the whole. He had engaged clerks and secre- 
taries to write for him. He had also a general supervision over 
his business, though he allowed it very little of his time. 

34th. Whether or not, after the introduction of ether. Dr. 
Morton enlarged his premises, and had numerous assistants whom 
he had not before had ? 

Ans. Yes. He enlarged his premises, and I remember two or 
three exti-a assistants. 

ooth. Whether or not, after the introduction of ether. Dr. Mor- 
ton's rooms were thronged by persons who wished to avail them- 
selves of the painless extraction of teeth ? 

Ans. A great many persons went there to have their teeth 
extracted without pain. I never saw his room filled. 

36th. In answer to 11th interrogatory, it is stated that Dr» 
.Jackson conversed very frequently and freely, or something to 
this effect. Whether or not, from the time any controversy arose 
about etherization, so far as you have heard from Dr. Jackson, 
has he, or not, uniformly and steadily stated that he was, and 
that he so considered himself the discoverer of etherization? 

Ans. Yes. 

Direct resumed by Mr. Dana. 

1st. What did Dr. Jackson say about the five hundred dollars? 

Ans. It was spoken of in connection w^ith another subject. He- 
had shown me some sponge gold, which he had prepared in some 
peculiar way; I asked him to give me a specimen, that I might 
.show it to Dr. Tuckei-, a dentist. I told him if he approved it, I 
should consider it an important thing, and should like the refusal 
of it. He told me that Dr. Hitchcock had partially the refusal of 
it. He then stated that he doubted whether he should get the 
five hundred dollars from Morton, or something to that effect. 
He stated that he had made application for a patent for this 
sponge gold. 



384 

2d. Do you know whether Dr. Morton sold rights for notes? 
and whether the notes were paid, or resisted, and why ? 

Ans. I know that he sold for part money and part notes, and 
that some of the notes were paid and some were not . 

3d. When did you first hear Dr. Jackson claim to be the dis- 
coverer of the anaesthetic power of ether ? 

Ans. It was after the controversy arose between Jackson and 
Morton, after the pamphlets had begun to appear. I can't slate 
when I did first hear it. It was during the fall of 1846, that I 
heard him say that he did not consider himself responsible at all 
for what Morton might do. It is possible that Jackson might 
have made the remark, that he considered himself the discoverer 
before the pamphlets appeared, but it was after the controver}" 
began. 

4th. Did he claim to have discovered all that is now known, 
or to have suggested to Dr. Morton to try ether? 

Ans. He claimed to have suggested it to Dr. Morton. There 
are many new facts about ether which have originated since its 
first introduction. The subject was not entered into fully. He 
claimed as the suggester and as the discoverer. 

5th. Did Dr. Jackson ever tell you that he had himself made 
any experiment? 

Ans. He did not ; I think I heard him make the remark that 

he had used it himself, but it was some years after the first dis- 

^^a,covery. I mean that some years after the discovery was known, 

I heard him say in my store, that he had used ether upon himself 

to be relieved from the effects of chlorine gas. 

6th. When did Dr. Jackson make this statement to you about 
his patent for the gold? Did it turn out useful or valuable? 

Ans. It was in the fall of 1846. It did not turn out practical 
for that purpose of filling the teeth. 

7th. Did Dr. Jackson say that Dr. Morton had any thing to do 
with the use of this gold ? 

Ans. No. 

Cross resumed by Mr. Jackson. 

1st. Whether or not, you know that Dr. Jackson withdrew any 
application he may have made for a patent in reference to sponge 
gold? 

Ans. I don't know. 

2d. Can you state what led to the remark, in answer to 3d 
direct resumed, of Dr. Jackson, that he did not consider himself 
responsible at all for what Morton might do. Had anything 
been said about his being responsible for what Morton at first 
did ? \vhether Vv^hat was said by him about not considering himself 
responsible, was said in connection with Morton's recklessness? 



385 

Ans. I do not know what led to the remark ; nothing had been 
said about his being responsible for what Morton at first did. I 
understood him to mean, with regard to Morton's application 
of ether. He has spoken of his recklessness repeatedly* Whether 
he spoke of it in this connection or not, I cannot say. 

3d. Whether what you have said in answer to the last question 
about Morton's application of ether referred to his then daily use 
of it, or how ? 

Ans. I supposed it referred to Morton's knowledge, or lack of 
knowledge of the scientific application of it, enabling him to judge 
of its effects upon different people and in different forms. 

4th. Whether it referred to Dr. Morton's general administra- 
tion of ether? 

Ans. I don't know as I can answer this any better than in the 
last. 

JOSEPH BURNETT. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, ) 
Suffolk county y \ 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the de- 
position in perpetuam of Joseph Burnett, taken before us upon 
the petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P, PUTNAM, 
Two Justices' of the Peace and Counsellors at Law, 
Boston, December 16, 1852. 



25 



Dr, J. JIaso7i Warren' ^ testimony. 

I, J. Mason "Warren, of Boston, physician, of lawful age. 
being first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogato- 
ries by R. H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton: 

1st. What is your residence and occupation ? How long have 
they been so ? 

Ans. My residence is at No. 6, Park street, in Boston ; my occu- 
pation is that of a physician ; they have been so about twenty 
years. 

2d. Are you, and how long have you been, a surgeon of the 
Massachusetts General Hospital ? 

Ans. I am a surgeon of the Massachusetts General Hospital, 
and have been so about seven years. 
Relations 3d. How long have you known Dr. C. T. Jackson, and how 

the parties. Ans. I have known him over tvv'enty years ; not very intimate- 
ly ; I have met him frequently. 

4th. How long have you known Dr. Vvm. T. G. Morton, and 
how intimately ? 

Ans. I have knoAvn liim between six and seven years ; not in- 
timately. 

5th. When were you appointed to act as surgeon of the hos- 
pital ? 

Ans. In February, 1846. 

6t]i. Please to state all your personal knowledge of the nrst 
use of ether as an anesthetic agent. 

Ans. Dr. Morton I first saw' in 1846, at the house of Dr. 
Warren, in Park street, I think, between 1 and 2 o'clock. He 
came there to show me an artificial palate, I being at that time 
interested in operations for fissure of the palate. Sometime af- 
terwards he came there again, about the same horn-, to exhibit to 
Dr. John C. Warren and myself some artificial teeth, which he 
said were constructed on a new plan. Sometime after that, in 
Circum- October, Dr. Warren informed me that Dr. Morton had \)eeTi 

stances there and informed him that he had discovered an assent for pre- 
connected . . ^ • ^ ■ ^ ^ • ^i i 

with the ventnig pam, 1 thmk he said, m dental operations — m dental or 

first opera- surgical operations — and requested Dr. Warren that he would af- 
hospital^^^ ford him an opportunity of trying it in a surgical operation. Dr. 
Warren, after some questions on the subject, promised that he 
would do so. On Tuesday, which I think was the IStH' of Octo- 
ber, and after the surgical visit at the hospital, a patient was 
brought up into the operating room for the purpose of having an 
operation performed. Dr. Warren then, apparently remember- 
ing his promise to Dr. Morton, said, "'I now remember that I 
have made a promise to Dr. Morton to give him an opportunity 
to try a new remedy for preventing pain in surgical operations," 



38: 

r.ncl asked the patient if he should like to have the operation 
done without suffering. He answered that he should. The op- 
eration was therefore deferred until Friday, the 16th of October, 
when the ether was administered by Dr. Morton, and the opera- 
tion performed by Dr. Warren. On Friday, being called 
to Watertown to perform an important surgical operation 
there, I was prevented from witnessing the operation at the 
hospital, but the facts in regard to it were stated to me, 
the same day, by Dr. Warren. On the following day, a woman 
had the ether administered to her, and, being made insensible, 2d oper- 
by the request of Dr. Warren, Dr. Hayward performed the ope- ^^^^"* 
ration, removing a tumor from her shoulder. The ether was 
administered in this case by Dr. Morton. I was present. The 
effect of the ether was fully succesful. The next time that I saw „ , ., ^ .,„, 
the ether given was m the early part oi r^ovember, the seventh putation. 
day, at which time Dr. Hayward amputated a limb, the patient 
being made insensible by the ether administered by Dr. Morton. 
Dr. Warren also removed a portion of the jaw from a female, 4th, remo- 
who was also rendered insensible by the ether, also administered val of jaw. 
by Dr. Morton. The next case was a patient of my own, No- 
vember the twelfth, in which the patient was entirely unconscious, 
while under the influence of the anaesthetic agent given by Dr. ^th, pri- 
Morton. This was a female at the west end of Boston, in the^^^^® ^^^""^ 
vicinity of Myrtle street. The operacion was the removal of a 
tumor from the arm. I believe that was the first private opera- 
tion performed with ether, so far as my knovfledge goes. The 
next time was on the twenty-first of November, on a patient from cth, oper- 
whom I removed a large tumor of the thigh at the Bromfield ation at 
House. The ether in this, as in the other cases, was given by ^^o^^^^^^^^ 
Dr. Morton, From this time until March, I had a series of sur- 
gical operations in private practice, in many of which Dr. Morton "th, series 
was present and administered the ether. On the sixth of March, °/ opera- 
I assisted Dr. Brown in an operation for dividing the tendons in 
a case of club foot, on a child in Essex street. The child was' Sth, club 
very timid, and resisted inhaling the ether from the ordinary ap- ^^J^f , °^ * 
paratus w^hich was then used. We were about relinquishing the ^ " 
attempt at etherization, when I proposed pouring the ether °on a 
sponge and placing it over the child's mouth. This was done, 
and with success, the child being etherized as completely as with 
the apparatus. On the fourteenth of March, I assisted at the 
hospital in an operation performed by Dr. Hayward for a -cesieo ^», 
vaginal fistula. The patient resisted the inhalation from the uui^'^'fi^tSa 
ordinary apparatus. T, by permission of Dr. Hayward, moistened operation 
a sponge with ether and placed it over her mouth ; in five minutes ^'Jf '"^ ^^ 
she became insensible. In the operation, whicli lasted about "■"''"*^^' 
twenty minutes, and which is, under ordinary circumstances, an 
extremely painful one, it was performed without experiencincr the 



slightest degree of pain. Siiortij after this, the spouge was sub- 
stituted at the hospital for the ordinary apparatus, and has been 
used there ever since. The sponge used in the earlv cases is now 
preserved in the hospital in the case with the surgical instruments. 
The use of the sponge produced a revolution in the use of ether, 
and was used everywhere. After the use of the sponge, Dr. Mor- 
ton ceased to administer the ether, and, sometime previously to 
this, it had been administered at the hospital by someone of the 
surgeons, or the house surgeon. 

7th. Was there another experiment at the Bromfield House, 
besides the one you have mentioned ? What was it, and who ad- 
ministered the ether ? 
Another Ans. There was another operation at the Bromfield House. 
XomaJid it ^^^^s on the thirteenth day of December. I think Dr. Morton 
House. administered the ether. The case was the removal of the end of 
the bone of the middle finger of the right hand. This was after 
the operation I have mentioned before. 

8th. Do you know of any other origin of the substitution of a 
sponge for the apparatus, except what you have named? 

Ans. I do not. Some gentleman in Europe discovered the 
same thing about the same time, before he could have heard of 
mv using it. It was Dr. Smith, of Cheltenham. 

Useoi'the ^*^^- ^^^ J*^'^ ^'^'^^^ ^^^^ *^^^* ^^ ^^^^^ '^^ substituted by the advice 
spoiige Dot of Dr. C. T. Jackson ? 
suggested Ans. I never did. 

son. 1^^^- ^^^ J^^ ^^'^^ ^^^'^^' ^^'' ^' '^' Jackson to be present at 

an expei'iment Avith ether at the hospital ? 

Ans. I have, a number of times. 

11th. When first? 

Ans. I don't remember the precise time. 

12th. Was he present at either of the first three occasions ? 
His first ap- Ans. He was not present on the seventeenth of October, or 
pearance at ^j^^ seventh of November. The first time I knew him to be pre- 
House 7th sent at any operation, Avas at the first operation at the Bromfield 
November, House. This was the twenty-first of November. 

f^cSor "" ^^^^' ^^^^^V'<^^% if ai^Jj ^^^^ ^^^ ^^^^ ^^ thiis operation ? How, 
spec a or. .^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ Other spectators ? 

Ans. So far as I remember, it was simply as a spectator. 

14th. What is your experience and opinion as to asphyxia, in. 
the use of the apparatus and of the sponge ? 

Ans. I think it is less likel}^ to be produced by the sponge 
than by the apparatus. It appears to me that asphyxia was 
rather more frequent when the apparatus was used than with tfee 
use of the sponge. The cases were easily remedied when we bad 
the apparatus. There were some one or two severe cases, 

15th. Was avoiding asphyxia the object in substituting tbe 
sponge for the apparatus, or a result obtained since ? 



389 

Ans. That was not the object, but it was observed since. The 
principal object of the change was a matter of convenience. 

16th. Does it still occur under the use of the sponge? 

Ans. Occasionally it does. 

17th. Did you ever know Dr. Jackson to take any part in the Never 
administration of ether ? son^to take 

Ans. I don't remember that I ever did. part in ad- 

iSth. At the times when he was at the hospital, as you have miDlstering 
said, did he take any part in the administration of the ether ? 

Ans. Not as far as I remember ; still, he may have done so. 

19th. Please state the first time that you knew anything of Dr. ^'ever 
Jackson, in connection with the use or discovery of the use of ja^ck^sonN 
ether ? haying any 

Ans. I think it was a week after the first trial. Dr. Warren c o n nexion 
told me that Dr. Charles T. Jackson had informed him that he ^eeV^ after 
had suggested the use of ether to Dr. Morton. the trial at 

20th. Please to state the first instance of your personal know- ^^^^ h©spi- 
ledge, if any, on that subject. 

Ans. My impression is, that Dr. Jackson gave me the same 
information about a fortnight after that. 

21st. What was the extent of the claim which he then made ? 

Ans. I do not remember. 

22d. Was the information you received from Dr. J. C. War- 
ren the first time you heard of Dr. Jackson's connexion with this 
subject ? 

Ans. It was. 

23d. Did Dr. Jackson, in his conversation with you, claim to impres- 
have suggested to Dr. Morton to try ether, or did he claim to sion that 
have previously made the discovery and communicated it, as a "^ ^^ ^ ® P " 
discovery, to Dr. Morton — or how otherwise — to the best of your ^^ \o^have 
knowledge ? s u g gested 

Ans. I don't remember exactly, but I think it was the former, to M. to try 

24th. What is your experience as to nitrous oxide gas, as an ^1^^^]^^^^^^ 
anaesthetic agent ? ler and oth- . 

Ans. I have never seen it used but once for that purpose, and^^'^^^^'^^^^^S 
my impresaion then was, that it was not to be compared in its 
eifects with sulphuric ether. This case was at the hospital, as an 
experiment, and we have never used it since. It was some time 
in 1848. 

25th. What is your experience and opinion as to chioi'oform, 
as an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I think it less safe than ether, and less manageable. 

26th. Have you, for the last six years, been engaged in an ex- 
tensive private surgical practice ? 

Ans. I have. 

27th. What is the result of six years experince in the use of 
ether, as to safety, certainty, and completeness ? 



390 

Ans. I have emploved, principally, the last four years, chloric 

and sulphuric ethers, and I consider, so far as my experience 

goes, that they are safe, certain, and efficient in their operations. 

Opinion 28th. In the cases where Dr. Morton administered the ether, 

■ how did he conduct the administration, as regards care, skill, and 

success ? 

Ans. He administered it very carefully and judiciously, and 

effectually. 

Adminis- 29th. What are the respective advantages and disadvantages 

tration of it of sulphuric ether, chloric ether, and chloroform, as anaesthetic 
by Morton, , ^r. ' ' 

careful, ju>gents .^ 

dicioas and Ans. Sulphuric ether is liable to produce more irritation about 

effectua]. the air passages than the two other substances ; the odor of it is 

not so agreeable, and is liable to pervade the apartment, and to 

be perceived in the clothes and breath of the patient for a long 

time. Chloroform is more agreeable to the taste, less liable to 

produce irritation, and much more powerful in its action than the 

other two substances — that is, acts with more rapidity, but is 

liable to the objection of not being so easily and safely managed. 

Chloric ether appears to me to combine the agreeable properties 

of the chloroform, with the safety of sulphuric ether. 

^S^ 30th. By the recipe of what chemist is the chloric ether made 

which is now in general use ? 

Ans. Dr. Hayes's. 

Cross-interrogatories by A. Jackson^ jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jachson. 

Morton 1st. At how many of your surgical operations, in private prac- 
adnwnister- tjce, did Dr. Morton attend and administer the ether ? 
or ^ter^of ^^s* ^ sliould say about eight or ten. I am not perfectly cer- 
witnesses' tain on that point. 

private 2d. At how many at the hospital did Dr. Morton attend, to 
and'fom-''at administer the ether ? 
hospital. Ans. I remember four. 

3d. At the operation spoken of in answer to the 6th interrog- 
atory, when Dr. Brown performed an operation in a case of club 
foot, do you remember who were present when the operation was 
performed, and who administered the ether ? 

Ans. I have understood, within the last few days, that Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson, Dr. Morland, and Dr. Buckminster Brown 
were present, but that Drs. Jackson and Morland did not come 
into the room until after the patient was etherized. They were 
not present in the room until after the patient was etherized, on 
account of the sensitiveness of the patient. I administered the 
ether on that occasion. 



391 

4tiu At the operation at the Bromfield House, on the 2l3t of 
NoYember, was the patient's name Williston ? 
Ans. I think it was. 

5th. Do YOU remember that you administered the ether in Wil- 
liston's case, on the 21st of November, and that Dr. Morton came 
in after the etherization was complete ? 

Ans. No, I did not administer it ; Dr. Morton administered 
it. 

6th. Is this the note bj which you notified Dr. Jackson of this 
operation ? 

Ans. It is. It is as follows,—" Dear sir : The operation will 

be to-morrow at nine, at the Bromfield House. Patient's name 

is Williston. Very truly yours," signed, "J. Mason Warren." 

7th, Whether, or not, chloric ether is a solution of chloroforoa 

in alcohol ? 

Ans. As to the true chemical composition of chloric ether, I 
am not prepared to give an opinion. 

8th. Whether you recollect that Dr. C. T. Jackson, soon after 
the announcement of etherization, brought bags of oxygen gas to 
the hospital ? If aye, for what proposed purpose were they to be 
used ? 

Ans. I think that Dr. Jackson did bring oxygen gas to the hos- 
pital to administer to patients who had been etherized, in case as- 
phyxia should occur. 

9th. Whether, or not, before Dr. Jackson so brought the bags 
of oxygen, cases of asphyxia has so occurred that means Y^rere 
sought for a speedy recovery »f patients so affected ? 

Ans. There had been one or two cases of asphyxia about the 
period when Dr. Jackson brought the oxygen gas to the hospital, 
and I think the question had arisen as to the best means of ob- 
viating this accident, 

10th. Whether you remember that in the fluid (at first its sub- 
stance being unknow^n) used at the hospital for inhalation, in 
October, 1846, there was some aromatic substance mingled with 
it? If aye, what was it? S^f^t^^ 

Ans. I do not remember it. I did not perceive it. &c., not 

11th. Was it anywhere taught, anywhere laid down in the taught or 
books, before September 30, 1846, that inhalation of pure sul- iif '^^^^^"^ 
phuric ether could be attended with safety to such an extent as before '4G. 
to produce insensibility to pain ? 
Ans. No. 

12th. Whether, or not, in your opinion, the purity of the sul- 
phuric ether from alcohol and acids, and the due admixture of at- 
mospheric air, are not among the most important particulars em- 
bfaced in the discovery o£ etherization ? 

Ans. I should think tliey were- Dr. Jackson once or twice in 



392 

the course of the first two or three months after October, 1846; 
mentioned to me the importance of it. 

13th. So far as yom know, from the time there was any question 
made, raised, or discussed, on this point, has not Dr. Charles T. 
Jackson, always, on all fit occasions, stated and declared himself 
to be the discoverer ? 

Ans. He has. 

14th. Whether, or not, any person can be the author of a dis- 
covery m the inductive sciences, without either originating any 
new idea, or devi^ng the means of establishing the truth of a 
conjecture, whether more or less probable, previously brought to- 
view by another person ? 

Ans. I should think they could not. 

15th. Whether, or not, you are familar with the facts and early 
history of the publication of etherization, in October, 1846, and 
the winter and spring following ? 

Ans. I am, with many of them. 

16th. Whether, or not, in these different times that you saw 
Dr. Morton, his knowledge, or want of knowledge, came under 
your observation ? If aye, what was his knowledge of sulphuric 
ether and the various kinds of ether, and of scientific or ehemicar 
matters ? 
|^^> Ans. He did not express any opinion on the subject. 

17th. Whether, or not, you can specify any new idea, connected' 
with the discovery of etherization, first originated by Dr. Morton, 
or any new experiment devised by him, by which that discovery 
was established? 

Ans. I can simply state that Dr. Morton first administerd the 
ether, and did it safely and effectually. 

18th. Whether or not it frequently happens, in dental and sur- 
gical operations on etherized patients, that, after total insensibil- 
ity has passed away, there is a period of consciousness, while 
there is no sense of pain ? 

Ans. There is. People frequently become conscious as ether- 
ization passes off, while they still remain insensible to pain. 

19th. Whether you recollect that the operation of November 
Tth, the amputation was to have been performed on Saturday, 
, October 31st, and was postponed to Saturday, November 7th ? 

Ans. I do not recollect. 

20th. Is not the etherized state generally one of agreeable 
dreams ? Is there any stupor or congestion of the brain? 

Ans. It usually is one of agreeable dreams. I should think in 
some cases there was stupor, with congestion of the brain. 



393 



Direct resumed hy Mr. Dana. 

1st. Do you recollect Dr. Jackson being present at the opera- 
tion for the club-foot, independently of what you have been lately 
tod? 

Ans. I do not. 

2d. By whom, and when, were you told this ? 

Ans. By Dr. Brown ; within a few days — since I finished my 
direct examination. 

3d. Did Dr. Jackson take any part? In particular, did he 
make any suggestion about the sponge ? 

Ans. He did not. 

4th. Was the note, mentioned in your answer to the 6th cross- 
interrogatory, written voluntarily, or in reply to a request ? 

Ans. So far as I remember, it was voluntarily. .^^^il 

5th. Were there other, and how many, gentlemen invited and 
present ? 

Ans. There were eight or ten others invited and present. '^SM 

6th. When did Dr. Jackson bring the bag of oxygen ? Was 
it ever used ? 

Ans. I do not remember when he brought it. It was never «S^ 
used to my knowledge. 

7th. Please refer to your answ^er to the 13th cross-interroga- 
tory. Do you know of his having made any claim to this discovery 
before his conversation with you, to which you have referred ? 

Ans. As I have stated before. Dr. Warren first informed me. ^^^M 
I had no other knowledge previously to Dr. Jackson's conversa- 
tion with me. 

8th. Did you ever know, and when first, that Dr. Jackson 
claimed to have been the sole discoverer, some years before, and ^^^'^^ *^^^° 
to have communicated this, as a discovery already made, to Dr. 
Morton ? 

Ans. No ; I know it now from his publications. 

9th. Did you at first understand that his claim Avas to have 
suggested the use of ether, w^hich led to the discovery in Dr. " 
Morton's hands ? 

Ans. I so understood it, as I have stated before, from Dr. 
Warden's information, and from Dr. Jackson's conversations after- 
wards with me. In my conversations with Dr. W^arren and with 
Dr. Jackson, I never understood it to be more than a suggestion, 
so far as I remember. I never understood that he had discovered 
it previously. 

10th. If a person is so far etherized as to be insensible to pain, 
is he in so sane a state that you trust to what he says about hira- 
sell? 

Ans. To a limited extent. 

11th. Do you know, of your own knowledge, of any case of a 



3?4 

person so far etherized as to be insensible, and yet able to pursue 
a rational inquiry, or to note and observe sensation correctly? 

Ans. I do. 

12th. How far insensible, and what proof of it? 

Ans. One of these cases has been published in the Boston 
Medical and Surgical Journal, in March, 1847. The patient re- 
covered his consciousness soon after the operation had com- 
menced, sufficiently to inquire how it was progressing, requesting 
that it should not be hurried, but that the operation should be 
thoroughly done. This being completed, and the wound dressed, 
he said that he had been well aware during a greater part of the 
time what was being done, but felt no more sensation than what 
would have been experienced from an ordinary examination. 

13th. On the 7th of November, 1846, were there more than 
two operations performed at the hospital under ether? 
Operation Ans. There was a third operation performed by myself, on a 
on a child, child, for hare lip. 

14th. Was this person you have mentioned, in answer to the 
12th direct-resumed, in a natural and sane state while insensible, 
or only in an active state of mind and senses ? 

Ans. 1 am not prepared to say whether or not he was in a 
natural and sane state. 

15th. Is insensibility to pain to a moderate extent, and how 
far a new discovery, in case of drugs, vapors, gases, and liquors ? 
^S^ Ans. No. Operations have been performed where perso!is 
were insensible from the effects of spirituous liquors. 

Cross resumed by Mr, Jackson. 

1st. Whether you remember that, at the time Dr. Jackson 
brought the bag, or bags of oxygen, the patient then was not 
asphyxiated, and that, on that occasion, there was no need of any 
remedies or restoratives, to induce a natural state in the patient ? 

Ans. I think he was not asphyxiated, so that it was not re- 
quired. 

2d. In your answer to the 3d direct-resumed, it is said that 

Dr. Jackson did not suggest the use of the sponge. Could he 

^S* have, on the occasion referred to, suggested this? On account 

of the sensitiveness of the patient, did gentlemen come up after 

the etherization was completed? 

Ans. He did not suggest it on this occasion. Gentlemen did 
come up after the etherization was complete. 

3d. In reference to the 8th and 9th direct-resumed, will you 
be kind enough td state what it was that Dr. Warren and Dr. 
Jackson stated in their conversations with you ? 

Ans. I have already stated that Dr. Warren told me that Dr. 
Jackson informed him that he had suggested the use of the ether 



395 

to Dr. Morton. So far as my memory serves me, the same in- 
formation was ffiven by Dr. Jackson to me. 

J. MASON WARREN. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, ) 
Suffolk County, \ 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam of J. Mason Warren, taken before us, upon the 
petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Tivo Justices of the Peace and Couseiiors at Law. 
Boston, January 6, 1852. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA ; 

District of Columbia, \ 

County and City of Washington, \' ^ ' 

Be it remembered that on this fourteenth day of January, in 
the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-three, I, 
William B. Webb, a Commissioner duly appointed by the Circuit 
Court of the District of Columbia, under the laws of the United 
States, to take affidavits and bail, did call and cause to be and 
appear personally before me, at my office in the aforesaid City of 
Washington, Josiah D. Whitney, a witness to be examined on 
the part and behalf of William T, G. Morton, one of the parties 
to a certain suit or matter of controversy now depending and un- 
determined. Dr. Charles T. Jackson being the opposing party in 
said suit or matter of controversy, and the said 

Josiah D. Whitney having been first duly cautioned and sworn 
to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, did, in 
reply to interrogatories propounded by James M. Carlisle, Esq., 
counsel tor William T. G. Morton, depose and say as follows : 

1st. Please to state what is your profession, and what your em- 
ployment at this time, and of Avhat scientific bodies or societies, if 
any, are you a member ? 

Ans. I am a geologist and chemist by profession. I am at 
present in the employment of the United States, as United States 
Geologist, and have been since 1849. I am a member of a num- 
ber of societies — of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 
the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, and several 
others. 

2d. Are you acquainted with Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston? 
If yea, how long have you known him, and were you, at any time, 



396 

and when, and in what capacity, connected with his laboratory, 
and were you at any time and when a boarder in his house ? 
This shows Ans. I am acquainted with Dr. Charles T. Jackson. I was 
that the quite intimately associated with Dr. Jackson from early in the 
il'^^^^luch summer of 1840, when I first became acquainted with him, until 
circniD- May, 1842. During this time I was constantly with him either 
stances as his assistant on the geological survey of New Hampshire, or as 
^wards ^ pupil and boarder at his house, with the exception of a few 
have' the^^onths during the summer of 1841, when he was engaged in the 
means of field work of the survey mentioned. From October, 1841, to 
^^tTr^^i -^^y? 1842, I boarded at his house, and was engaged in chemical 
leged dis- investigations in his laboratory, and assisted him in the prepara- 
covery,&c. tion of his lectures. During the summer of 1845, I made a jour- 
prior to Dr. j^gy iQ Lake Superior and back in company with Dr. Jackson, and 
after our return we were together a good deal, until December 
1st, 1845. 

3d. Have you any knowledge of the circumstances of the acci- 
dental breaking of a bottle containing^ chlorine in his laboratory, 
and of any injury to Dr. Jackson by such accident, and of the 
remedy or remedies used by him, and particularly as to the use of 
ether ? State all the facts which you may remember in that behalf. 
Ans. I have no recollection of any accident of the kind. 
3d.'' Did you hear Dr. Jackson, or any person connected with 
his laboratory, or in his family, speak of such accident at or about 
that time, or while you were boarding with him, or in his labora- 
tory ? 
siW ^' th^t •^^^^' ^ ^^^^ ^^ recollection of anything of the kind, 
he should '^d.^ If any such accident had occurred, do you think you would 
have been have known it, or heard of it ? 

ignorant of ^^^j^g^ j j-^^^.^ j,^^ doubt I should, if it had been a serious one, or 
even as Dr! attended with such peculiar circumstances as those mentioned by 
J. alleges^ Dr. Jackson in his ^statement to the Hon. W. H. Bissell, Chair- 
man, &c., and in his memorial to Baron Von Humboldt. 

4th. Where were you during the fail and winter of 1846 and 
spring of 1847 ? Had you any correspondence with Dr. Jackson 
during that time ? 

Ans. I was in Germany. I corresponded with Dr. Jackson 
during that time. 

5th. Produce and annex the original letters of Dr. Jackson to 
you in the latter part of 1846, after the discovery of etherization 
became public ; particularly, any letter from him first claiming 
such discovery, and any letters prior thereto and subsequent to 
the 30th of September, 1846. 

Ans. I have produced them and annexed them. They haye 
been by the commissioner marked *' Exhibit A., W. B. Webb, U. 
S. Commissioner;" "Exhibit B., W. B. Webb, U. S. Commis- 
sioner;" '^ Exhibit C, W. B. Webb, U. S. Commissioner," m 
ray presence. 



397 

6th. Do you know fhe handwriting of Dv. Jackson? Have you 
seen him write ? In whose hand- writing are the letters produced 
with your last answer, and are they not wholly in such hand- writing? 

Ans. I do know his hand-writing and have seen him write, and 
have no doubt that they are wholly and. entirely in his hand- 
writing. 

7th. Do you know George O. Barnes ? Was he at any time 
an assistant, or otherwise employed by Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. I know him. He was employed by Dr. Jackson as an as- 
sistant o«i the geological survey of Lake Superior, and had been, 
before that time, a pupil in his laboratory at Boston. 

8th. Had you at any time, and when, a conversation with said 
Barnes touching his testimony in support of Dr. Jackson's claim 
to the discovery of ether ? If yea, when and where, and what did 
said Barnes say touching his said testimony ? 

Ans. I had frequent conversations with Mr. Barnes during the Note tkis, 
summer of 1847, on the subject of the discovery of etherization, ^^ ^^ ^^' 
and in one of those conversations he admitted that his testimony p^^clpal^ 
bad been re-written for him by another person, and that he had witness, 
"testified to anything that Dr. Jackson wanted him to.'' 

JOSIAH D, WHITNEY. 

Sworn to and subscribed before me this 14th day of January, 
1853. W, B. WEBB, 

U. o\ Commissioner. 



I, Robert H, Eddy, of Boston, Civil Engineer and Solicitor of 
Patents, of lawful age, being first duly sworn, depose aad say, 
in answer to interrogatories by R. H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel for 
Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton : 

1st. W^hat is your residence, and how long have you resided 
there ? What is your office or occupation, and how long have 
you been engaged in it ? How largely ? 

Ans. My residence is the city of Boston, of the State of Mas- 
sachusetts, and I have resided in such city all my life. My pro- 
fessional occupation is that of a civil engineer and solicitor of 
patents, and I have been extensively engaged in such business up- 
wards of twenty years.. 

2d. How long and how intimately have you known Dr. Chailes 



398 

T. Jackson ? State particularly what had been the relations be- 
tween yourself and Dr. Jackson before September, 1846 ? 

Ans. My first acquaintance with Dr. Charles T. Jackson took 
place in the early part of the year 1836. At that time I was di- 
rected by the late Hon. Samuel T. Armstrong. Mayor of Boston, 
to proceed and survey certain lakes or waters, and report on the 
cost of their introduction into the city. I employed Dr. C. T. 
Jackson to make sundry chemical analyses of such w'aters, and 
this was the cause of our personal acquaintance. Soon after the 
Relations same. Dr. Jackson hired a house adjoining one in Green street, 
^*th^^^ i) ^^"^^^ occupied by my father. Caleb Eddy, esq., with whom I re- 
Jackson. * sided. This produced an acquaintance between our respective 
families which was of a very intimate nature for several years, 
and up to the time of the ether discovery. Dr. Jackson and roy- 
vself, during this period, were on very strong friendly terms. I 
entertained for him the purest fieelings of amity, and was ever 
ready to do him, or any member of his family, any fevor in my 
power to bestow. I have reason to believe I had with him the 
position of a confidential and very intimate friend. 

3d. How long and hovv intimately have you known Dr. W. T. 
G. Morton ? What was the occasion of your first acquaintance 
with him? 

Ans. I never had anything more than a slight acquaintance 
with Dr. W. T. G. Morton previous to October, 1846. He was 
a boarder in the family of Dr. Jackson when I first met him, and 
rny impression is that it was while Dr. Jackson resided in Somer- 
set street, and not a great while before October, 1846, that I first 
Relations saw Dr. Morton. I occasionally and rarely met him duiiog my 
with Dr. visits to the family of Dr. Jackson. I have no recollection of 
Morton. ^j^^ g^.^^ ^j^^^ j g^^ j^^ Morton, nor the occasion of my first ac- 
quaintance with him. I have never had much, if any intimacy, 
other than of a business character with him. and hare rarely met 
him during the past four or five years. 

4th. Please to state, fully, particularly, and in order of time, 
all your knowledge respecting the ether discovery made known 
in the fall of 1846 1 

Ans. In replying to this interrogatory, I will endeavor to state 
facts according to the best of my present recollections, and, in 
order to refresh my memory, I v\'ill refer or have recourse to min- 
utes which 1 wrote of many transactions in relation to the ether 
discovery which came under my observation during a few months 
after its announcement. The said minutes were made very soon 
after these occurrences happened, and while they w»~re fresh m 
memory. 



399 

Within a few days after September 30, 1846—1 think the first History of 
of Octobei"— Dr. Morton called on me at my office, stated to me ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
that he had made an important discovery, by which he could ex- with botli 
tract teeth w^ithout pain, and desired to know from me whether it parties, 
could be secured by a patent. After replying to him that he must J^J's^^'^f^g. 
inform me the nature of it before I could give him any definite covery. 
opinion, he described to me that he used sulphuric ether, by ad- 
mijiistering it by inhalation in a state of vapor. He informed me 
that he had extracted a tooth without the person suffering any 
pain; that the man, after awaking from the sleep in which he had nj 

been put, found, to his astonishment, his tooth lying upon the 
floor. I stated tio Dr. Morton that I doubted whether the dis- p^^ ^j^jg 
covery was really patentable, but that I would consult the law by the sido 
and such decisions as I couhl, and advise him as to the result, of the as- 
After this, I saw Dr. Morton not more than once, I think, until p^/^_ ^^ 
Wednesday, the 21st day of October. In the meantime, I had not claim 
seen several statements in the newspapers relative to the experi- the dis-- 
ments performed at the hospital, and had understood from the ^l^i ^^^'^' 
family of Dr. Charles T. Jackson that he (Dr. Jackson) had some months 
connection with Dr. Morton in making the discovery. My reflec- after. 
tions on the subject had led me to the belief that a patent could rpj^j^g^^^^g 
be obtained. Accordingly, on the 21st day of October I so in- iiow Dr. J 
formed Dr. Morton, and stated to him that I had understood that became « 
Dr. Jackson had rendered him some assistance in making the dis- ^^?^^^*^.? 
covery. I represented to Dr. Morton that, although I considered discovery, 
it possible to obtain a patent, I did not by any means deem it cer- -'uHder- 
taiii ; but that, by suitable ami proper exertion, it seemed to me stood from 
that it could be had. Fe-eling desirous of benefiting Dr. Jackson, of^Di^T.'^ 
and perceiving that I could do so by being interested in the patent, that he had. 
I suggested, in view of the professional skill, experience, and ser- "sombcon- 
vices I might be obhged to render, that the patent, if taken out, ^^^h^^^the 
should be shared equally between Dr. Jackson, Dr. Morton, and discovery, 
myself. Dr. Morton replied that he did not know^ w^hy Dr. Jack- not that he 
son should have any interest, as he had an understanding with ^^'^^ ed it 
Dr. Jackson to f jlly satisfy him for any advice he might have four years 
rendered him. He further said that if I would obtain a patent, be fore I 
he would give me one quarter part of it for my services and ex- 
penses. 

In order to satisfy myself as to the position of Dr. Jackson in 
relation to the discovery and the understanding between him and 
Dr. Morton, I called on Dr. Jackson during the evening. I learned g^g]jg pj.^ 
that he was then in the Howard Athenaeum . I immediat£ly went Jackson. 
into the theatre, and, as soon as I could obtain a good opportu- 
nity, went into the parquette, w^here Dr. Jackson and his friends 
were sitting. I informed him that I was desirous of having an 
interview wdth him on a matter of importance, and would call on 
him early the next morning at his office. Accordingly, 1 called 



400 

on him the follo^ving mornmg. I cannot x^ecoiiect the precise 
conversation which passed between us at this interview, but the 
substance of it was, that Dr. Jackson informed me that, by the 
laws of the Massachusetts Medical Society, he would be prevented 
irom joining with Dr. Morton in taking out a patent, as he would 
be liable to expulsion from the Society were he so to do. He 
stated that he intended to make a professional charge of 8500 to 
Dr. Morton for the advice he had given him, and that Dr. Mor- 
ton had assented to this. That he did not wish his name con- 
nected with that of Dr. Morton in any way. That Dr. Morton 
might take out a patent if he desired it, and do what he pleased 
with it. 
This js an I made inquiries as to the assistance rendered Dr. Morton, and 
explicit ad- ^sked Dr. Jackson whether he had ever tried any experiments to 
that Dr. J. practically demonstrate the fact that the inhalation of ether would 
Lad tried prevent pain during a surgical operation. He informed me that 
Ko J^eri- [jg i^j^j jjQi;^ rj <^as f^|ly persuaded from the conversation I had 
that ' his *^^^^ -^^* -ackson thought the whole matter of little value. He 
t'coKNEc- supposed, as he led me to believe, that Dr. Morton might realize 
tion'-" ^_th sQnae thing from it in his business, and stated his willingness that 
/.'itarxr Jo= ^c should do what he pleased with it so Ions: as he did not couple 
no more nis (Dr. Jackson s) name with it. J 

has always (The part in brackets objected to as mere opinion of the witness. 
admitted; J. P. P.) 

I subsequently inquire^l of Dr. Morton whether he had agreed 
to give Dr. Jackson the sum of $500 for the assistance rendered, 
as well as for all the doctor's interest in the discovery. He re- 
plied that such was the case, and that he had agreed to pay him 
at the rate of 10 per cent, on sales of licenses, until the ^500 was 
paid. 
Tet the Dr. Jackson, in our conversation, never mentioned to me of his 
argument ^^.^^ having made any researches or experiments touchii^ the in- 
Sr Dr.'^ J. halation of etha- as a preventative of pain in surgical operations, 
liarp on the the first information I ever had of such being from reading his 
feQure ofp^^^i'^^^lon in the Boston Daily Advertiser of March 1st, 1847. 
w)eak° ^The first information I had of Dr. Jackson having performed any 
such ex- experunent in 1842, was on reading Dr. Jackson's statement in 
periment5 j^^ Martin Gay's pamphlet, pubhshed about Mav 20th, 1847. 
when thexe On Friday eVening, October 23d, I visited the''-' Boston Thea- 
•was no oc- tre ''' in Federal Street, and there saw the Keans in the play en- 
casion for^j^jg^ a The Wife's Secret." After the performance of said play 
'^ was concluded, I returned to my residence and there found Dr. 

Jackson and wife in the front drav^-ing room, in conversation with 
my parents. At this interview, while conversing on matters per- 
tinent to the discovery, I urged Dr. Jackson to associate with Dr. 

* This L5 important, showing that Dr. Jackson had not fjur years be/ore d» 
eran now, any idea of the important difcorerj. 



401 

Morton, on the ground that I was confident he was mistaken in 
his views of what would he the action of the Medical Association, 
and that by joining in the patent, he would of a certaioity obtain 
credit as a joint discoverer or inventor ; whereas, should he not do 
so, he might lose all oredit as in the case .of the Magnetic Tele- 
graph discovery, v^^hich I understood from him he had suggested 
to Professor Morse. I also urged on him the peouniary advan- 
tages wnich would probably result to him. His wife joined with 
me and said he always threw away every chance of pecuniary 
profit when it offered. [At this timj, Dr. Jacksoii appeared to This is ut- 
have so little confidence in the discovery that] he said to me that, ^^^J^^f^^^fiT 
if Morton would give him hi^ professional charge of $500 for the d^. jack- 
advice rendered him, he might take the whole of it and do what son's pre- 

he pleased with it. f?«t Vosi- 

^ tion. 

(The part in brackets objected to as the mere opinion and s?ip- 
position of the witness. J. P. P.) 

The isext day, or within a few days after, I called on Dr. Augustus 
A. Gould, to barn from him the nature of the rules of the Medi- 
cal Society. He showed me the By-laws, in which I io«und that 
they only excludsed a member from dealing in secret remedies. I 
saw at once that there could be no objections to the patenting by 
Dr. Jackson of any invention he might make, and Dr. Grould ooin- 
cided with me in my views. 

After preparing the specification, 1 submitted it to Dr. Jackson, 
I took it to his house and read it to him. He approved of i,t, in 
regard to the different kinds of ether mentioned in such specifica- 
tion. I received no information or commcnicatioa whatever from 
Dr. Jackson. I have the impression that, at some interview with 
him, before I commenced to write the specification, I did inquire 
of him respecting the manner of disguising the smell of ether by 
perfumes or essential oifs, and Miat he informed me that this could 
be affected by mixing the ether and essential oil with water, and, 
by the process of washing, the impurities would subside in the 
water, while the perfumed ether would rise on the surface. I do 
not state it for a fact, that I derived even this information from Dr. 
Jackson, for it is possible that it might have been from Dr. Mor- 
ton ; but the impression is on my mind that it was from Dr. Jack&on. 

The specification, as prepared by me and read to Dr. Jackson, 
was not changed by any suggestions of Dr. Jackson. In fact, 
whatever information I wanted in regard to the mode of using the 
ether, I previously derived from Dr. Morton'. The i^maiks in the 
specification respecting or other ethers besides the sulphu- 
ric, were made by me after consulting certain works on chemistry 
which were in my library, I recollect perfectly that after, or 
just before commencing to write the specifioation, it occurred to 

26 



402 

me that some of the other ethers might possess the narcotic 
properties of the sulphuric, and that, if I should confine the 
process to the use of the latter, some person, by simply sub- 
stituting one of the others, might evade the patent. I therefore 
examined stiveral works on chemistry, in regard to the modes of 
preparing ethers, particularly consulting the work entitled Brande's 
Chemistry ; and, after deriving information from Such, I prepared 
the specification so as to embrace in it other ethers besides the 
sulphurio. 

After reading the specification to Dr. Jackson, I had it copied 
and prepared so as to be executed by the parties. I recom- 
mended to Dr. Morton to allow me to insert in the agreement a 
bond to be given Dr. Jackson by him, ten per cent, on all sales 
of licenses, instead of ten per cent, until the amount paid would 
reach SoOO, and I advised him to be liberal towards Dr. Jackson, 
both in giving him credit and a chance of profit. [In this I was 
"^^^ . J^ governed by a sincere desire to benefit Dr. Jackson. I also sup- 
and^^ forci- posed it would be for the interest of Dr. Morton to do so, as I 
tie, being presumed Dr. Jackson might possibly improve the article used, 
under oath, qj. produce a better quality of ether than could be found in the 
3)r! J.'s un- Ki^rket. During the whole of the transactions relative to the 
warrant- procural of the American patent, I was governed by a strong 
able at- feeling of interest for Dr. Jackson. I possessed a desire to obtain 
thL ^ w?u ^^^ ^^^^ ^^ much credit and pecuniary advantage as I could con- 
ueas. consistently.] To benefit him, if possible, was a great induce- 

ment to me to become interested in the patent, and therefore de- 
part from a rule I had long before adopted and rigidly complied 
with ; such rule being, never, while exercising my peculiar pro- 
fession as a Solicitor of Patents, to be pecuniarily interested in 
any patent, or own any part thereof. That such was a rule of 
mine can easily be substantiated by reference to the specification 
of a patent granted on May lOth, 1844, to Denning Jarves and 
the New England Glass Company. I had a legal right to be in- 
terested in any patent, but I conceived that, were I to make it a 
practice to do so, as some other solicitors of patents were in the 
habit of doing, I might be subjected to improper suspicions, or 
my clients might infer that, while interested in any invention, I 
could not give them correct advice on any of like nature. I 
therefore declined all such interest. Of the expediency of 
such, I must confess, I at times thought I had some doubts. 
Circumstances, however, led me to waive my feelings in this 
instance, and, under the belief that, by being interested in 
the patent, I could be of service, not only to Drs. Jackson 
and Morton, but, I may also say, to others, and particularly to 
Dr. Jackson, I became involved in the matter, beyond what, 
perhaps, I should have done on further or more mature reflec- 
tion. I certainly would never have had anything to do with 



403 , 

it, could I have foreseen the trouble I afterwards experienced, and 
the ill treatment I met with from Dr. Jackson and his associates 
or legal advisers. 

(The part in brackets objected to as witness's desires and sup- 
positions. J. P. P.) 

On Tuesday morning, the twenty-seventh of October, Drs. 
Morton and Jackson executed the papers for the American pat- 
ent. While Dr. Jackson was passing from his office to my own, 
I told him that I had seen Dr. Gould and he had shown me the 
laws of the Medical Association; that Dr. Goufd's opinion and 
mine coincided in relation to vv^hat was meant by the term 
^^ secret remedies ;^' that such could not mean patented ones, as 
they were not secret, the specifications of such being inscribed 
on the books of the Patent Office, and free to be examined by 
any person. He replied, ^' Well, if Dr. Gould thinks so, that set- 
ties the matter with me ; I have no objections to signing the pa- 
pers with Dr. Morton." I think I give the exact words made 
use of by him. 

After reaching my office, he on his part, signed and executed 
the papers necessary to enable me to procure the patents in the 
name of Dr. Morton. The petition for this patent was in the 
usual form, [and I have no reason to believe, and I do not now 
believe it was ever seen by Dr. Jackson, until he saw and signed 
it at my office.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as the belief and opinion of 
the witness and as immaterial. J. P. P.) 

I believe it was a printed form, such as I generally used, and 
was filled up to meet the case, and had the usual printed power of 
attorney attached. The files of the United States Patent Office, 
however, will settle this question, as well as the character of the 
power of attorney. Dr. Jackson also signed an assigment to Dr. 
Morton of all -his right and interest whatever w^hich he possessed 
in the invention or discovery, which assignment will be found on 
record in the United States Patent Office. [I am under the full 
and entire belief that he never saw this instrument until he vis- 
ited my office to execute the papers. There existed no special 
necessity for showmg it to him before, as he had agreed to assign 
liis interest to Dr. Morton, and the assignment only required to 
be prepared to meet the case. Dr. Morton being to give him a 
bond to pay him in accordance with their agreements.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as the opinion of the witness,, 
and not testimony as to fact, and as immaterial. J. P. P.) 



404 

I have lately been shown the printed form of letter, dated Dec. 
18th, 1851, and written by Dr. Jackson to Hon. Wm. H. Eissell, 
chairman of the select committee on the ether discovery. In 
that communication, I find the following words, viz : 

"Finding that I was in great danger of losing- the credit of 
my discovery, 1 was fouiish enough to listen to the advice of the 
patent solicitGr, Eddy, v\^hom I * lid not at the time suspect of 
being interested with Morton in his attempts to rob me of my dis- 
covery, tmd by his pretended friendly advice I allowed my name, 
under the following protest, to be used in procuring letters ])atent. 
This document I found was not the one that Mr. Eddy actually 
sent to the Patent Office, and that discovery led to the investiga- 
tion proving that Mr. Eddy w^as a co -partner with Mr. Morton. 

" The protest dictated by me, and written in my presence by 
Mr. Eddy, was as follows : Dr. Jackson is extremely unwilling to 
take out a patent for anything applicable to the relief of human 
suffering; but in order to secure the honor of this discovery, and 
to coiforni to the laws of his country in transmitting his rights 
to another, hereby consents, fyc. 

"Under his usual power of attorney, Mr. Eddy eiltered this as 
follows, and without my knowing it at the time of signing it. 
* Dr. Jackson, willing to benefit Mr. W. T. G. Morton, assigns to 
him his right to the interest, and requests the Couimissioner of 
Patents to issue the patent in the name of W. T. G. Morton,' or 
woids to the same effect. Trusting that my injunctions had been 
faithfully carried out in the papers, I signed them without reading 
them, and that was the mystery of my name having been asso- 
ciated vrith th'.it of Mr. Morton in the patent so improperly ob- 
tained.'^ 
This is [Such an attempt of Dr. Jackson to make it appear that I im- 
IS__^"j properly made an alteration in a paper, I can onfy characterize as 
^(o-piniov?^ base and calumnious, and i-tterly void of truth. The meie idea 
of the wit- of such a course never had a moment's existence in my mind, and 
ness as to j ^-Qst confess it was with the sorrow and surprise that I found 
motives! ^^' Jackson obliged to resort to such means to support his 
claims.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as .opinion of witness, and 
argument, and not testimony as to any fact. J. P. P.) 

In regard to the ^^yrotesV referred to by Dr. Jackson, I have 
no recollection of any such, nor do I believe I ever wrote it. 
Among the patent papers, the assignment which Dr. Jackson gave 
to Dr. Morton is the only instrument, I believe, which cOiitains 
the request to the Commissioner of Patents to issue the patent to 
Dr. Morton. I have the original rough draft of the assignment, 
and it was prepared without any consultation with Dr. Jackson 



405 

as to its form, and contains no sucli v/ords or protest. I Eever 
had any power of attorney v/iiicli authorized me, to my knowledge, ' 
to alter this paper, and the only power of attorney I ever had in 
relation to the procural of the patent was signed ana executed on 
the day of the sigrdng of the petition and specification for the 
])atent, and bears even dale with the assignment. [The truth of 
the statement of Dr. Jackson that I altered such a paper under a 
power of attorney, can be judged of when it is known that no such 
power of attorney ever had existed.] 

(The part in brackets obiected to as opinion, and not testimony . ™^ ^^' 

f r ^ 1 -D iy\ X ? ^ jection is 

of any fact. J. l\ P.) too sharp. 

The perti- 

On Thursday, October 29, (it might have been the following, ^^^^y ^^of 
day,) I had an interview with Dr. Morton at his office, in course ^e^^e jji^gj 
of which the subject of securing patents in foreign countries was be appa- 
introduced. I informed him that, as the steamer w^as to sail for^'^^** 
Europe the next Sunday, if any steps were to be taken in the 
matter of securing the invention abroad, they must be at once, as 
by the succeeding vessel, to sail in a fortnight afterwards, I feared 
the whole matter would become known in England. I informed 
Dr. Morton that the first introducer oi the invention into Eng- 
land, or many other foreign countries, was the one entitled to a 
patent there ; that any person, v/hether inventor or not, could 
obtain one in England, if he saw lit to make the communication 
to a person Ihere and pay tlie expenses, such person receiving the 
communication taking out the patent in consequence of the com- 
munication and subsequently assigning it to the communicant. 
The result of this interview was, that Dr. Morton made me a 
proposition that we should expend to the amount of $200 in 
taking certain preliminary measures towards securing patents in 
England and France. So far as right was concerned, I, Dr. Mor- 
ton, or whoever else w^ould pay the expenses, and run the risk of 
obtaining a patent in England, could do so through an agent there. 
[Knowing, as I did, that Dr. Jackson had sold to Dr. Morton all 
his right, or interest of v^hatever nature, in the invention or dis- 
covery, and supposing, from what I knew of the business char- 
acter of Dr. Jackson, that he would be the very last man to incur 
any pecuniary risk in a matter of this kind, I did not think or 
dream of having or being under any moral or legal obhgation to 
have any communication with him relative to it. During the 
time, I v/as preparing the necessary papers to go out to Europe. 
I thought I would examine a description of the new laws of France 
on patents, such description being found in the Repertory of Patent 
Inventions, No. 20, for August, 1844. I there found that article 
29 of said law provided that " the owner or the inventor of an 



406 

invention which is secured by patent in a foreign country ^ may- 
secure a patent in France." I also found that foreigners may 
obtain patents of invention ; but came to the conclusion, from 
other parts of the said description, that such foreigners must be 

inventors of what they would patent. Now, as the American 
patent was not granted, although it had been applied for, and Dr. 
Morton would be the oioner of it V)hen granted^ I was fearful that 
Dr, Morton could not, under the position of a JQint discoverer, and 
applicant for a patent, take out a patent in France. Had the 
patent in Ameiica been granted, there would not have been any 
question of the ability of Dr. Morton to take out the patent in 
France, provided he was not excluded from so doing by other 
provisions of the French law. 

Dr. Jackson had assigned to Dr. Morton, all his right, title, and 
interest whatever, in the invention or discovery. I therefore sup- 
posed that he could have no possible objections to execute any 
instrument which would secure to Dr. Morton the very right I 
had before conveyed to him ; and deeming it advisable, under the 
circumstances, to have Dr. Jackson unite v/ith Dr. Morton, in 
order that no objection might arise in France from the fact that a 
pateii.t had not been granted here ; and, moreover, being very de- 
sirous of securing for Dr. Jackson, all the credit of being a joint 
discoverer I possibly could. I inserted his name in the papers to 
be sent abroad, the same as I did that of Dr. Morton.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as suppositions, thoughts, 
dreams, and researches of witness. J. P. P.) 

The documents consisted of an assignment and power of attor- 
ney (combined,) together with a copy of the American specifica- 
tion. On Saturday forenoon, October 31, Dr. Jackson visited me 
at my office. My impression is that I called on him, and we 
walked there together. I informed him of v/hat I had done, and 
requested him to sign the papers. I read them to him fully, and 
clearly explained them and the object I had in view in requesting 
his signature. Before signing them, — it might have been after 
he had done so, — he said, " 1 think I ought to have something 
for doing thls.^^ My reply was, " How so ? Why, Doctor, you 
are giving up nothing of importance, are incurring no pecuniary 
or other risk, and, moreover, as any one can take out a patent in 
most of the countries of Europe, iy Ay should yon have anything?" 

He then said, "I think I ought to have something, at least, in 
such countries where my name may be used or be necessary in 
getting patents." I replied, ^^ Well, Doctor, this is a subject I 
have no time now to discuss, I must get my papers into the mail 
to-day, to go by the steamer to-morrow, and, as I have much to 
accomplish, I must defer the matter for the present." He said, 



407 

*' I do not wish to defer it, now is the time." I then asked him Agreemcn 
what he thought he ought to have. In reply, he said, " he thought ^^^^^ ^^^ 
he ought to have ten per cent., the same as he had in this coun-the "sole 
try." " But," said I, " Doctor, you forget, you are incurring no «?^^ origin 
risk, expending no money, and you must recollect that patents in '^^^ f^^^^cov- 
foreign countries cost large sums of money. I do not perceive on 
what ground you have any right to such a percentage ; but really, 
I have no time to go into the matter now ; if you have any right, 
and we cannot agree as to what will be satisfactory, I shall have 
no objections to leave the matter to be decided by a proper re- 
ference." With this, he appeared perfectly satisfied. 

After the papers were signed, or the business concluded, Dr. 
Jackson said, I had better advise Dr. Morton to license the Mas- 
sachusetts General Hospital to use the discovery, the doing of 
which would tend to remove any prejudices against it. I replied 
that I would do so, and afterwards did ; and not only advised Dr. 
Morton to such effect, but to grant every charitable hospital in 
the country, the free right to use the discovery for the benefit of 
the poor. 

After this interview with Dr. Jackson, I saw and informed Dr. 
Morton, that, in order to satisfy Dr. JacksoD, I presumed that I 
should be obliged to give him something. The next day was 
Sunday, November 1. As I had determined to leave the suc- 
ceeding day for Washington, I called at Dr. Jackson's house in 
Somerset street. My intention in visiting the Doctor at this time 
was to endeavor in some way to satisfy him for any rights he had 
conveyed to me, if he had assigned any. I did not find Dr. Jack- 
son at home, and v/as informed that he had left Boston the pre- 
vious afternoon for Baltimore, or somewhere thereabouts. 

The n€xt day (Monday) I left Boston, in the afternoon, for 
Washington; after remaijiing there until the following Saturday, 
I took the cars at noon of that day for Baltimore. 

On reaching the statian of the Baltimore and Philadelphia „ 
railroad, I met Dr. Jackson and Mr. Joseph Peabody on their pj.. j. by 
jeturn. V^e journeyed together as far as Philadelphia. Stjonthe side of 
after I had taken my sent in the raiivray car, Dr. Jackson left Mr. p ^ Y^^?^^^' 
P«eabody and seated himself at my side. I informed Kim the yernothing 
nature of some of my business in W^ashington, and stated that I is hinted as 
should be happy as aoon as possible after we should reach home *^ ^^^ P^^" 
to settle the matter which was still pending between us. I left ^^^^ ^jg, 
Philadelphia the next morning for New York, and reached Boston coveiy. 
on the morning of Tuj^day, the lOtli of November ; Dr. Jack- 
son returned home a day or two afterwards. On my ariival 
home, I found my professional business had so accumulated during 
my absence, and my time was so incessantly employed that I 
could find no opportunity to call -upon or see Dr. Jackson. 



408 

On Saturday afternoon, November 14, while sitting in my 
office and engaged in writing, Francis B. Hayes, Esq., called on 
me. He said at first that he came as a friend of Dr. C. T. Jack- 
son, and requested permission of me to see the papers signed by 
Dr. Jackson, and relating to foreign patents, I at once exhibited 
thera to him. After perusing them he stated to me that he thought 
Bemunera- Dr. Jackson should receive some remuneration for having signed 
ed^bv ^Dr' *^^ papers, and that he was his attorney, and had called at the 
Jackson, * instance of Dr. Jackson. I then expressed much surprise that, 
not " dis- after I had exhibited such a willingness to arrange all matters 
9overy:^^ 10 j^etween Dr. Jackson and myself in a manner right and satisfaeto- 
patents ' a- ry> ^ {P^- Jackson) should, without having any conference with 
broad, nie, without calling on me or having any reason to think I would 
not do all that was right, and speedily do the same, send a 
lawyer to me. [The friendly feenngs existing between us did not 
seem to me to warrant such. While I acknowledged his right to 
take such a course, it seemed to me too much like an attempt to 
entrap me in some way. I did not like the proceeding and the 
manner in which Mr. Hayes introduced himself, nor his subsequent 
conduct.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as not testimony of any fa€ls, 
but the thoughts, feelings and opinions of the witness. J. P. P.) 

I stated to Mr. Hayes that I was not aware of any disposition 
on my part to be unjust towards Dr. Jackson ; that I had always 
since ray acquaintance with him, been governed by the most friend- 
ly feelings towards him, and then possessed no other. I asked 
Mr. Hayes what he thought ought to be satisfactory to Dr. Jack- 
son. He replied that he thought that I ought to give him ten 
per cent, of the net profits abroad ; that if I would do so, every 
body would say that I had acted fairly. He also said I ought to 
take into consideration Dr. Jackson's peculiar situation, the ''female 
influences" to which he was subjected, and ought not to feel of- 
fended or wounded at any imprudent act of his. 

I asked him if I gave Dr. Jackson any percentage of any profits, 
what guaranty I should have that he v/ould not make further de- 
mands, or do or say something injurious to the interests of those 
concerned in the patents. He said, in reply, that Dr. Jackson 
would never dare do so after the papers were executed, which 
should be prepared by Mr. Charles G. Loring, who was also Dr. 
Jackson's attorney. I then replied to him that, if Dr. Jackson 
would fully agree to say or do nothing to the injury of those in- 
terested, or allow any thing of the kind to be done or said by 



409 

any one he could control,! would give him (in order to settle the 
matter and have no further disturbance from Dr. Jackson) ten per- 
cent, of ??iy portion of the net profits. In order that he mi^ht 
fully understand me, I stated to him that I could not say whether 
Dr. Morton would agree to do anything for Dr. Jackson cr not ; 
that must he a matter he must settle vath him. 

Just before Mr. Hayes left, he made a remark that ten per cent. 
on my part and ten per cent, on Dr. Morton's would be twenty 
per cent. Fearing that some misunderstanding had occurred, I 
took special care to illustrate what I meant by ten per cent, of 
my part of the net profits. I said simply, by the way of illustra- 
tion, and not by any means under the supposition that any such 
profits would accrue, "If the net profits that may arise shall 
amount to $100,000, one half of ^100,000 is .$50,000, v/hich 
will be my share ; ten per cent, of $50,000 is $5,000, or the sum 
to give Dr. Jackson on my part, provided the net profits are 
$100,000." " Yes," said Mr. Hayes, " that is it." I was very 
particular that he should not misunderstand me, and my father, 
who was present, took up a newspaper, and in the margin of it 
and in pencil, illustrated the same to Mr. Hayes by figures. 
Whenever Mr. Hayes said anything to me in regard to Dr. Morton 
giving the same, I told him that I could not answer for what Dr. 
Morton would do, but he must make what arrangement he could 
with him. [Feeling very indignant that Dr. Jackson should have 
so unkindly treated me as not to have called on me, or made per- 
sonal application to me, before seiiding to me a le^al gentleman, 
I called at his house on my way home. He was absent, but soon 
returned.] I stated to him that I felt v/ounded in feelings by his 
conduct ; that, from what I had learned he and his friends were 
saying and doing, I bad reason to apprehend serious consequences 
would ensue. That if he thought Dr. Morton was in any manner 
attempting to deprive him of any credit ©r profit, I begged he 
would not jeapordize my interests and those of my friends abroad, 
to whom I had written respecting patents, and who v/ould proba- 
bly take measures to secure them. lie said he certainly would 
do nothing to injure mt or my interests ; that he was satisfied, as 
he had seen Mr. Hayes, who had seen Dr. Morton, that all diffi- 
culties would be arranged. While in conversation the door bell 
was rung, and my father v*^as announced as desirous of seeing me. 
He requested me to return home on business. I left with him and 
was informed that the letters patent had arrived from Washing- 
ton in the mail of that evening:. 

(The part in brackets objected to, as not testimony of any facts. 



410 

The next day, (Sunday, Nov. 15th,) I again visited Di\ Jack- 
son. The call was made directly or soon after dinner. I found 
him and his wife in their rear parlor. He was very much e'xcited ; 
First claim said Dr. Morton was taking steps which would deprive him of 
cover? '^bv ^^^^^^ ^^ *^^ discovery ; and repeatedly said to me, much to my 
Dr. J. astonishment, for I had never heard him say anything of the kind 
before, '' I claim the whole of it ; it is mine — he did nothing but 
under my prescripHon .'" I begged Dr. Jackson not to set up 
such a claim ; as, in my opinion, I informed him he never could 
substantiate it, for he had but little or nothing to do with the mat- 
ter ; that, by so doing, he would only create an opposition to him 
and those interested in the patents, that must inevitably result to 
his and their injury. He then seemed determined to claim the 
whole merit of making the discovery. I remained during the af- 
ternoon and took tea with him and his family. In the evening I 
called at the Winthrop House to see Mr. Hayes. Not finding him 
at home, I proceeded to Dr. A. A. Gould's, in Tremont street. 
While there Dr. Morton ca^rne into Dr. Gould's study ; said he 
had been down to my father's house to see me, and had waited 
some time. Shortly afterwards Dr. Henry J. Bigelow came and 
consulted Dr. Morton relative to an article which he (Dr. Bige- 
low) was preparing for publication in the Boston Medical Journal 
of Wednesday evening. While reading the article, a step was 
heard in the entry. Dr. Gould said it was Dr. Jackson's, and it 
proved to be so. Dr. Jackson entered ; appeared somewhat sur- 
prised at seeing those present, and somewhat cold towards Dr. 
Morton. 

Dr. Gould had previously remarked to me that he thought it 
very unfortunate that there should be such an apparent misunder- 
standing between Drs. Morton and Jackson ; that each had been 
told by various pei-sons that the other had said and done much 
against him, vvhich probably were magnified representations of 
what had actually been said and done ; that while two persons 
kept apart from one another so much, they never could have a 
good understanding between them; that they had better be brought 
together, and, by mutual explanations, he had no doubt they 
would find themselves mutually mistaken. 

The chance offering for a reconciliation, I stepped up to Dr. 
Jackson and whispered in his ear ; I told him that then was his 
This is ^^^^ ^^ endeavor to come to some good understanding with Dr. 
•wholly in- Morton ; that I did not believe he would find Dr. Morton at all 
consistent disposed to take any advantage of him ; and that they had better 
with Dr. explain before those present what were the exact claims of each 
pretensions ^o the discovery. Dr. Jackson then stated that he had suggested 
and per- to Dr. Morton to use ether on a refractory patient ; admitted that 
:fectly con- \^q j^^^j never tried any experiment himself; had never performed 
Chandler's ^^7 surgical operation by which he ever demonstrated the fact 
evidence, that the inhalation of sulphuric ether would alleviate pain during 



411 

a surgical operation ; and, finally, after some mutual explanations 
on the part of him and Dr. Morton, Dr. Jackson expressed him- 
self satisfied that he had been misinformed as to what he had been 
led by others to believe Dr. Morton had said and done ; and was 
satisfied to rest his claims on the ground of being a joint discov- 
erer with Dr. Morton. 

I have a strong impression on my miiid that Dr. Jackson 
affirmed that he had advised Dr. Morton to get permission to 
Mse ethe]? at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and that Dr. 
Morton demurred to this, and said it v/as not so. " But I can 
prove it," eaid Dr. Jackson. "Well," said Dr. Morton, "if 
3^ou can prove it, Doctor, I have nothing more to saj." I dis- 
tinctly remember the latter remark of Dr. Jackson, and the reply 
of Dr. Morton. 

I have also a strong impression on iny mind that Dr. Bigelow 
hdidi i)xQ proof skcds oi the article he was preparing, and that 
alterations were made therein, and particularly at the latter part 
of the article. I do not now remember the particular nature of 
the alterations made, [but I recollect that Dr. Jackson appeared 
to be perfectly satisfied with the article after Dr. Bigelow had 
made the changes.] 

(The part in brackets objected to, as not testimony of any fact. 

J. P. P.) 

Dr. Jackson and myself went towards our respective homes in 
company. Just before we separated, some remark was made 
by Dr. Jackson in regard to the percentage. He spoke of re- 
ceiving ten per cent, from me and ten per cent, from Dr. Morton, 
and that that would be twenty per cent. I at once remarked 
that such was not the case ; that ten per cent, of my part of the 
profits in foreign patents, and ten per cent, of Dr. Morton's only 
made Xqh per cent, of the whole ; and, in the way of illustration, 
said, if the profits were $100,000, and my portion were $50,000, 
ten per cent, of that would be Sd,000. 

While walking through Howard street with Dr. Jackson, I told 
him that he ought to be particularly careful in regard to allowing 
his wife or family to speak or converse with others in relation to 
the matters between Dr. Morton and himself. That I was satis- 
fied, and he himself must be, that much tiiftlculty would probably 
arise were they to do so. He pledged himself to me that hence- 
forth there should be nothing said ; that I " need not fear, he 
would take care of that.^'' 

The next day, (Monday, Nov. 16th,) the day on which the 
British mail steamer sailed for Liverpool, I received at my office 
an early call from both Mr. Hayes and Dr. Jackson ; I think Mr. 
Hayes cam^e first, and afterwards Dr. Jackson. They expressed 



412 

a determination to have all matters arranged before the steamer 
should sail, and threatened that, if both Dr. Morton and myself 
did not come to terms with Dr. Jackson, they would make such 
communication abroad as would ruin the interest of both of us. 
They stated that they had letters already prepared which they 
should forward to France if something was not forthioith done 
in the matter. I remonstrated against such proceedings as ex- 
tortionate and unjust, as unwarranted from the friendly relations 
I had always manifested towards Dr. Jackson, and the exertions 
I had made in this matter in his behaJf. Mr. Hayes said he had 
misunderstood the per centage I stated I was willing to allow 
Dr. Jackson ; that he supposed it was ten per cent, of the whole 
net profits. I expressed great astonishment at this, after my 
particular endeavors to explain and illustrate my meaning. Find- 
ing that I Y/ould not suffer myself to be overreached, they stated 
that they would forward their communications to France. I then 
told them to " do it if they would, and take the consequences." 
If they were disposed, under all circumstances, to adopt such a 
proceeding, I could say no more. I stated I could see no reason 
why I should be driven in such a summary m^annej to conclude 
arrangements with Dr. Jackson. 

[I had never manifested any disposition to do him injustice, 
but was ready and willing, so far as I was concerned, if he had 
any rights in the foreign patents, to accord to him, after a reason- 
able time and investigation into the matter, what might be satis- 
factory ; but I did not like the summary attempt to extort from 
me, as well as from Dr. Morton, a large interest in the foreign 
negotiations.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as thoughts and opinions of 
w^itness. J. P. P.) 

Mr. Hayes informed me that, if I did not accede to Dr. Jack- 
son's terms, my reputation vrould suffer, as it was in the power of 
Dr. Jackson and his friends and counsel to injure me. To this I 
replied, *'l have no fear of that." My father, who "was present, 
begged Dr. Jackson to desist from the course he was taking, and 
stated that he believed him under wrong influence and advice. 

Dr. Jackson and his counsel still persisting in affirming that 
they would forward their communications to Europe, and having 
made what my father deemed an offensive remark, my father 
spoke up very quickly to me and said, ^-Let them send their com- 
munications to Europe, if they will do so, and are disposed to be 
so unreasonable, let them take the consequences," or words to 
that effect. Dr. Jackson, finding my father very angry at his 
proceedings, then said he would agree to the terms offered by me, 
(which were ten per cent, of my portion of the net profits,) and 
make what arrangement he could with Dr. Morton. I had pre- 



413 

viously stated that I could not answer for what Dr. Morton would 
do. I further stated that the condition on which I would agree 
to give the ten per cent, was, that Dr. Jackson should bind him- 
self for the future to say or do nothing to the injury of those in- 
terested in the patents here and elsewhere. This was assented to 
by Dr. Jackson, he pledging himself that he would make no com- 
munications to Europe, and gave me to understand positively that 
none should go out in the .steamer of that day. Mr. Hayes 
wished me to put on paper and sign w^hat was the purport of our 
understanding. He drew up a sketch of it, and handed it to me 
to sign. On reading it, I found it entirely misrepresented the 
nature of the terms, as it expressed that I was to give Dr. Jack- 
son ten per cent, of the profits of sales. 

Finding that Mr. Hayes had presented me a paper to sign, so 
contrary to our understood agreements, I was so disgusted with 
the proceeding that I positively refused to sign any paper he might 
prepare. 

On Wednesday, the 18th of November, I went to New York, 
at which place I remained until the Sunday following, leaving 
there on that day at about 2 o'clock p. m., in the late steamer 
Atlantic, and reached Boston on Monday morning, the 23d of 
November. In the afternoon, v/hile returning from my office, I 
met Dr. Jackson in Court street and opposite the head of Hano- 
ver street. I stated to him that I had just returned from New 
York, was ready to settle our matters as soon as convenient to 
him. He said, in reply, that he could do nothing about it, but 
should leave all to his attorneys, Messrs. Loring and Hayes, whom 
I must see if I wished to do anything further. [His manner 
struck arte as very peculiar, quite different from what I had before 
observed. Me seemed reserved, or not inclined to converse on 
any subject.] 

(TliQ part in brackets obiected to, as the opinion of the witness. 
J. P. P.) 

I afterwards called on Mr. Charles G. Loring, and had a con- 
versation with him. He promised me that, in a few days, or as 
soon as lie could get through with some insurance cases that he 
had ui court, he would endeavor to arrange matters. I accord- 
ingly waited for him to notify me w^hen he would be ready to meet 
rae on the subject. 

Not hearing from Mr. Loring for some considerable period of 
time, I again called on him, and found him engaged in a case in 
court. I spoke to him there, and he again gave me an assurance 
that, as soon as he could confer with me relative to the matter at 
issue between Dr. Jackson and myself, he w^ould do so. On or 
about the 28th of January, 1847, 1 received a letter from Messrs. 
Loring and Hayes, in which after sundry statements, they informed 



414 

me that " under the present circumstances of the case, we think 
the least that, in justice to yourselves and Dr. Jackson, you can 
offer is 25 per cent, of the profits arising from the invention both 
at home and abroad, in settlement of his claim upon you." Also — 
'^We hope you will see by our suggestions that we wish only to 
have a fair distribution of the profits of a discovery made among 
those who cannot, if they disagree effectually sustain the patent, 
and which, if sustained, promises to give all parties large sums of 
money for their united co-operation.'' 

The difficulties which had arisen between Drs. Jackson and 
Morton, the conduct of the former, together with my not being 
able to agree with the latter in many of his views on matters per- 
taining to this subject, caused me to take mei;suies to get rid of 
all interest in the patent; and, tov/yrds the latler part of Decem- 
ber, 1846, about six weeks after the date of the American patent,^ 
and more than five months before June 18, 1847, the date of the 
affidavit made by me of the letter to the surgeons of the Massa- 
chusetts General Hos})ital — I transferred all my interest in the 
American patent to Dr. Morton. As soon afterwards, (viz. on 
May 31st, 1847,) as I possibly could effect arrangements, I aban- 
doned to those who held and ovned the foreign patent, all claims 
on them relating to it. 

[On Saturday, March 13th, 1847, Dr. Morton called at my 
oflice. During tho time he was there, he stated that he thought 
I could not know or be aware of the statements Dr. Jackson was 
circulating relative to me ; that Mr. J. W. Barton, of the Albion 
Hotel, had informed him that he had understood Dr. Jackson had 
stated that I had obtained his signature to a legal document or 
paper under ^^ false pretences,''' — that I had made a statement ta 
him of the contents, and that he signed such statement without a 
previous perusal of it; that afterwards, on examining, it he found 
it to be different from what I had represented to him. Dr. Mor- 
ton referred me to Mr. Barton, who, he said, could give me 
more full information on the subject. 

Accordingly, about 2 p. m., in company with my friend W. P. 
Gregg, Esq., I called on Mr. Barton, who corroborated the state- 
ments of Dr. Morton, and said he (Mr. Barton) received his in- 
formation from a mutual friend, but he before could feel at liberty 
to furnish me with his name, he felt bound to consult him and ask 
his permission. In a subsequent interview with Mr. Barton, he 
stated to me that the mutual friend was John Hetiry Gray, Esq. 

With this information, I called on Dr. Jackson and requested 
an explanation. Not receiving it, I addressed to him a letter sub- 
stantially, as follows ; 



415 

*' Boston, March 28, 1847. 
Dr. C. T. Jackson : 

Sir : My engagements for a week past have been so very press- 
ing that I have not been able, until now, to find time to address 
you respecting the subject relative to which I called at your office 
on Sunday, the 21st inst. I would now state that I have under- 
stood there has been a report in circulation, to the effect that I 
had induced you, under misrepresentations, or false pretences, to 
sign a paper or papers, which, after examination, you found to be 
entirely different from what you had been informed by me. 

I have now to request you to state to me (in writing) whether 
you or any member of your family, to your knowledge, have ever, 
in any conversation with any person or persons, given them to 
understand that you had been thus deceived by me, or whether 
in any conversation or written document, you ever intended to 
convey an idea of the kind. As such a statement, if ever made by 
any onu, is entirelv false, 1 shall expect you to do me the justice 
to give me such a contradiction of it as will be satisfactory to me 
or my friends. 

Respectfully yours, &c., 

R. H. EDDY.'' 

In reply to the above letter, I received one in the following 
terms, from Dr. Jackson : 

"Boston, March 30, 1847. 
Robert H. Eddy, Esq.: 

Dear Sir : A Ifew minutes since, I received your note of the 
28th March. 

I wish to see you a few minutes v/ith Mr. F. B. Hayes, and he 
informs me that he will be disengaged at any hour we can agree 
to meet him before 4J o'clock at his office, and will see us in 
private. 

Yours, respectfully, 

C. T. JACKSON." 

To the abov>e note I returned to Dr. Jackson a reply, as follows : 

"Boston, March 30, 1847. 
Dr. C. T. Jackson : 

Dear Sir : Your not^ of this morning, acknowledging the 
receipt of my communication of yesterday, (erroneously stated 
March 28th) is before me. In reply, I have to state that circum- 
stances will prevent me from complying with your request therein, 
contiained. 

In haste. Yours respectfully, 

r. h. eddy." 



416 

I waited until the lOth of April, hoping that Dr. Jackson would 
render me that justice which I sought, but, as it came not, I then 
wrote to him again, as follows : 

'' Boston, April 10, 1847. ' 
" Deaf*. Sir '. Twelve days liaye elapsed since my note to you 
of the 29th March (dated 28th) was placed in your hands. I 
have patiently waited from you the statement therein asked—- 
one which courtesy and justice would require you to have given 
without a mome«.t's delay, I shall be loth to consider your 
silence as an admission on your part that you have made asser- 
tions and spread reports devoid of truth, and injurious to my 
character ; or that, when such are in circulation, come from 
whom they may, by not contradicting them, or affording me 
proper means of doing so, you will suffer them to be believed. 
I should be sorry to be obliged to view you as guilty of having 
falsified my doings, for the sake of establishing any claim you 
have — an act which no well-bred gentleman v;ould commit. 

"A further continuance of silence on your part will, I think, 
fully warrant me in conclusions which may lead to consequences 
that may be far from agreeable to you. 

'' Yours, respectfully, 

"R. H. EDDY." 
" Bt. Charles T. Jackson." 

I subsequently received a letter in the following terms : 

*^ 1 Devonshire, corner of State street, 

'' Boston, April 14, 1847. 

" Dear Sir : Dr. Charles T. Jackson received your note of 
Saturday last, just as he was leaving for Washington, and re- 
quested me to inform you of his absence ; but, by reason of press- 
ing engagements, I have not found time to call upon you and 
let you know that, in the hurry of Dr. Jackson's departure, he 
had not time to answer your letter. 

" Will you please receive from me this excuse for my tardy 
compliance with Dr. Jackson's wishes. 

" Dr. Jackson requested me to ask you for a copy of the peti- 
tion or solicit for the patent for the "new application of sulphuric 
ether for relief of pain attending surgical operations," as it was 
drafted when signed by him ; as well as copies of any papers 
which he requested should accompany the petition OT solicit. 

''If you will please have copies of these papers prepared and 
send the same to me, I will pay for them as soon as received. 
" Yours respectfully, 

"FRANCIS B.HAYES." 

" R. H. Eddy, Esq." 



417 

To Mr. Hayes's letter I replied as follows : 

"Boston-, ^p^illQ, 1847. 
^*' Sir: In reply to your note of the 14th instant, I have to in- 
form you that it would afford me pleasure to comply with your 
request for a copy of the petition which Drs. Mortan and Jackson 
signed, could I furnish it. It was, so far as my recollection 
serves me, in the ordinary form, such as persons generally sign, 
on making application for a patent, and was by me considered a 
paper of so little importance that I did not deem it necessary to 
procure a copy of it. 

" Yours respectfully, 

"R. H. EDJ3Y." 
^* Francis B. Hayes, 

'' 1 Devonshire sfre^, Boston.^' 

I received nothing further from either Dr. Jackson or his attor- 
ney, in relation to this matter ; ana, as I shortly afterwards ceased 
to feel any particular interest in the ether discovery, I never 
troubled myself to obtain from Dr. Jackson a refutation of the 
charges to which I have alluded. The next time my attention was 
directed to it was when I read the letter of Dr. Jackson to the 
Hon. W. H. Bissell, dated Dec. 18th, 1851.] 

(The part in brackets objected to as immaterial, irrelevant to 
any material question connected with etherization. J. P. P.) 

In my letter to the surgeons of the Massachusetts General 
Hospital, and which was sworn to by me on the 18th of June, 
1847, I stated that '* I had found Dr. Jackson tinctured with 
old and exploded prejudices against patents, and I labored to re- 
move them." 

By such prejudices I meant such as have been common to 
many other persons, viz : that there was an odor of quackery 
about patents. Dr. Jackson expressed to me no objections to a 
patent being taken out ; on the contrary, he was willing it should 
be, provided it could be done without his name appearing in it, 
or being connected with that of Dr. Morton. I never advised Dr. 
Morton that /le could take out a patent in his own tmme, but I in- 
formed him, on the 21st of October, that, from what I had learn- 
ed, I was of the opinion that the discovery was made conjointly by 
him and Dr. Jackson, and that the patent, if applied for, must be 
hj them conjointly. 

As I never informed Dr. Morton that, as he had made the first 

application of the discovery, he could take out a patent in his 

own name. I have to remark that Dr. Jackson never called on 

me and asked me why I had so advised Dr. Morton, nor did I 

27 



418 

ever attempt to explain to Dr. Jackson that in consequence ot 
such application, Dr. Morton was entitled to take out a patent in 
his own name. I never recognized Dr. Jackson as other than a 
joint discoverer, and whenever I spoke to him of losing credit for 
the discovery, I meant as a joint discoverer. I did remark to 
him that I believed Dr. Morton would make application for a 
patent whether legally authorized to do so or not, and that, 
-should he succeed in obtaining one without Dr. Jackson's name 
being mentioned in it, he (Dr. Jackson) might lose what credit 
he might be entitled to in the matter. My reasons for believing 
that Dr. Morton would apply in his own name alone were, that I 
supposed he entertained doubts as to Dr. Jackson being in any 
respect a joint inventor or discoverer, and that he believed that 
he (Dr. Morton) was the sole discoverer. Under such a belief, 
I supposed he would certainly make an application in hir own 
name. 

I find stated in the pamphlet pubhshed by the Messrs. Lord, 
the attorneys of Dr. Jackson, the following words : 

" It is proper m this connection to state that Dr. Jackson was, 
in the month of November, 1846, notified by Mr. Eddy, that he 
had in his possession for him (Dr. Jackson) a considerable sum of 
money which had been realized from the sale of patent rights, 
and that Dr. Jackson indignantly refused to accept it." 

The fact is, I never had, at any one time, in my possession, and 
for Dr. Jackson, any such sum of money ; neither did I ever give 
him any notice that I had any. 

I believe once, when Dr. Jackson expressed to me his fears that 
Dr. Morton would not faithfully comply with his agreement to 
pay him the ten per cent, on licenses, and mentioned in the bond 
of Morton to him, I somewhat jocosely remarked to him that I did 
not think he had much reason to apprehend any difficulty on that 
point, as, from what 1 had been informed, I was led to suppose 
that Dr. jNIcrton's negotiations, then completed, would produce 
a sum the percentage on which would in all probability nearly 
amount to that for which Dr. Jackson originally stipulated to dis- 
pose of his whole interest in the matter ; that the funds would be 
likeh to pass through my hands, in which case I, as the friend of 
Dr. Jackson, should be pretty sure to watch over his interests, 
and see that he was not deprived of that to which he was entitled. 
An indignant refusal to receive such money was never, to my re- 
collection, made by Dr. Jackson, as I never notified him that I 

Wells's ^^^ ^^y ^^^^ ^°^ \n.m. 

claim — in- About the time I was preparing the papers for the procural of 
terview be- the patent in this country, I was requested by Dr. Morton to call 
ton^° and ^^ ^^^ office and see Dr. Horace Wells, whom he invited me to 
Wells. converse with on the subject. Accordingly, I did call and see 



419 

him there. At this interview. Dr. Wells doubted whether Dr. 
Morton could get a patent, as he did not, as he expressed himself, 
believe the subject w^as a patentable matter. He advised Dr. Wells, so 
Morton, however, to apply for a patent on the application of far from 
ether to relieve pain in surgical operations, and, under such ap- any^"fiaim^ 
plication, sell as many licenses as he could, and obtain as much advises 
money for it as possible. I believe he said that he had, withhi a Morton to 
short time, been engaged in some shower bath invention which he *^^^ ^ 
had made, and which had been very profitable to him, by reason of 
sales effected under similar circumstances. From the manner and 
conversation of Dr. Wells at this time, I discovered nothing to 
lead me to suppose that he was under the belief that such an ap- 
plication of ether had ever been conceived by him. 

In respect to Dr. Jackson's early prejudices against patents, I 
endeavored to overcome them by expressing to him what seemed 
to me correct and well established views in legard to the pro- 
priety of every inventor protecting himself in accordance with the 
laws of his country. Dr. Jackson seemed convinced of the cor- 
rectness of my views, for he subsequently informed me that, after 
consultation with a chemist of great reputation, (Dr, Hase, I 
think he said, was the person,) he had resolved to secure by pa- 
tent such inventions as he might thereafter make, and, in accord- 
ance with such conclusions, he sent me the specification of an al- 
leged improvement on the preparation of gold for filling teeth, 
and expressed to me a desire to have a caveat filed in it, prepara- 
tory to making application for a patent. I subsequently received 
from him a letter as follows : 

'- Boston, Marck 26, 1847. 
'' Will Mr. R. H. Eddy please send to me, by the bearer, my 
letter describing my method of preparing gold for plugging teeth, 
&c. 

'a mentioned to you last Sunday that I did not wish to take out 
any patent for it, and such are my views at this time. 
" Your obedient servant, 

'-' CHARLES T. J4CKS0N." 

In accordance with the request of Dr. Jackson, I returned to 
him the letter alluded to by hhn in his note. 

5th. You have described a protest which Dr. Jackson says he 
.dictated and you wrote. Did he dictate to you anv such protest, 
or any substJintialJy like it, and if so, what? 

Ans. I have not the most dist«ant recollection of anv such pro- 
test, and I fully and entirely believe none such ever'had exist- ^'*^'' *^"'' 
ence. 

6th. Did you make any change in the paper which Di. Jack- 
son signed, after you had read it to him / Or did you change 



4C0 

any paper which he signed, from the form he dictated to you ? 

Did you write any paper under power of attorney ? 

Compare Ans. I have no recollection of making any change whatever in 

this with any papers Dr. Jackson signed, after he signed them, and I am 

Jackson's positive that I never made any such change as mentioned by him ; 

1 did not write any papers under power or attorney. 

7th. Did Dr. Jackson read the papers before signing them ? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson either read the papers before signing them, 
or I fully read them to him. I am inclined to think, however, 
that I read them to him, and afterwards placed them in his hands, 
or before him, while at my desk. It is a custom with me either 
to read papers to my clients, or cause them to read them before 
they execute them — I am very particular in this respect. I have 
not the least doubt in the world, that Dr. Jackson had a good 
opportunity to understand the papers before he signed them, for 
I had not the slightest reason or desire to have him sign them 
without at first fully comprehending them in every particular. 

8th. Did you make any change in them after he read them ? 

Ans. I am not aware of having made any change in the word- 
ing of a single paper after it was signed by Dr. Jackson. 

9th. What was the extent of Dr. Jackson's claims at the time 
he signed the papers for the American patent ? 

Ans. I am not aware that he claimed more than the suggesting 
to Dr. Morton the use of ether on a refractory patient ? 

10th. You have said that Dr. Jackson had told you that he 
suggested the Magnetic Telegraph to Professor Morse. Did you 
or not, at the time you made the arrangement between Drs. Jack- 
son and Morton as to the American patent, suppose Dr. Jackson 
to have been the true discoverer of what Professor Morse claimed ? 
Why? 

(This question objected to as immaterial and irrelevant. 

Ans. I did suppose Dr. Jackson, at such time, to have been the 
true inventor or discoverer of the Magnetic Telegraph of Professor 
eon's cSm Morse, All my information on this subject, however, was de- 
to Morse's rived principally from the assertions of Dr. Jackson that such 
Telegraph, ^as the fact. I had never, to my present recollection, read any 
statement to the contrary. I had understood there had been a 
coriespondence between Dr. Jackson and Professor Morse, while 
I was in Europe in the winter of 1S38-9, and I believe Dr. Jack- 
son sent me, while I was in Paris, a communication on the sub- 
ject for the French Institute, which I think I delivered or sent to 
Mr. Elie de Beaumont, then a distinguished professor in the Ecole 
des Mines. I believe I placed it in the hands of Mr. Elie de 
Eeaumont during one of my visits to him, but it is possible that I 
might have sent it to him by post. 



421 

11th. When yoa advised Dr. Morton to associate Dr. Jackson 
with him in the patent, did you advise him that Dr. Jackson was 
a joint discoverer, or that he might be, or how otherwise, and on 
what evidence did you found this advice? 

Ans. I advised Dr. Morton that, from what I had understood 
from Dr. Jackson, I was led to the belief that the matter was or 
might be considered a joint discovery between them. I had formed 
my opinion principally from the statements and admissions of Dr. 
Jackson, he having- informed me that he suggested to- Dr. Morton 
to use ether, in order to control a patient who was desirous of 
having some dental operation performed. I also understood that 
he had made no experiments to ascertain the fact afterwards dis- 
covered by Dr. Morton. I supposed that had not Dr. Jackson 
suggested the use of etiier to Dr. Morton, the latter would never 
have made the discovery. Also, that, had Dr. Morton kept the 
matter a secret, Dr. Jackson would never have known of the effect 
discovered. [Thinking the matter one in which both had been 
engaged, and believing it would be for the interest of Dr. Morton 
to have Dr. Jackson associated with him in the discovery anjd 
patent, and feeling inclined to obtain as much credit for Dr. Jack- 
son as I could with propriety,] I recommended to Dr. Morton 
that the patent be taken out on a joint invention. 

(The part in brackets objected to, as feelings and thoughts of 
the witness. J. P. P.) 

12th. How far was this advice a deliberate opinion, and hovf 
far a matter of caution and poHcy for Dr- Morton, or how other- 
wise ? 

Ans. I do not think the opinion was a deliberative one. I have 
no doubt that I supposed it w^as for Dr. Morton's interest to have 
Dr. Jackson situated as a co-discoverer; and it was more what 
[ su[iposed was a matter of policy with him, together with what 
I imagined to be true, and what I believed to be for the benefit of 
Br. Jackson, that induced me to advise Dr. Morton to apply for 
the patents, as he did, viz : as the joint invention of himself and 
Dr. Jackson. 

13th. Did Dr. Morton, or not, ever admit that, in his ov/n 
opinion, Dr. Jackson was a joint discoverer? 

Ans. Dr. Morton never admitted to me that Dr. Jackson was 
a joint discoverer with him, or was, in fact, a discoverer in any 
sense. [I recollect Dr. Morton's appearance, when I advised 
him that I thought it was a joint discovery, struck me as strange- 
lie demurred to it, and said, he did not see why Dr. Jackson 
should have anything to do with it, as he had made arrangements 
with him to satisfy him for the advice or assistance he had ren- 
dered him. I am inclined to think that, at the time, T did not fully 



422 

corapreheiid the objections of Dr. Morton to being connected with 
Dr. Jackson.] He, however, afterwards acquiesced in my advice, 

(The part in brackets objected to, as opinion of witness. J. P. P.) 

.14th. When Dr. Jackson said, ^' but I can prove it," and Dr. 
Morton replied, "if you can prove it I have nothing to say," 
please describe the manner of Dr. Morton. 

(This question and answer objected to as matter of supposition 
and opinion.) 

Ans. The manner of Dr. Morton was such as by no means in- 
dicated any admission on his part that Dr. Jackson could prove 
what he stated. I should rather say it was such a manner as a 
person would naturally assume with a reply to a question or state- 
ment such as neither admitted nor denied the truth of such state- 
ment. 

Cross-interrogatories by A. Jackson^ jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. Will you be kind enough to state how the answers to the 
previous questions have been prepared — whether with delibera- 
tion, with ample time to consider the matters in the questions pro- 
posed — whether by reference to any publications, books or memo- 
randa — if any, what — whether with consultations w^ith any per- 
sons — if any, who ? , 

Ans. I prepared them with some considerable deliberation, ands 
so tar as I now know, I had ample time to consider the matter^ 
proposed ; my references were to memoranda which I have spokcy 
of in the answers ; and I also had, during the time, a printed cop 
of my letter to the surgeons of the hospital, which I read over 
I had before me some other publications, but was not aware tha 
I paid much attention to them ; I have had no consultation with 
any one, except that Mr. Dana handed me his questions, and I 
might have asked him what he meant' by particular parts of his 
questions, but it was nothing of any importance that I am avvare of. 

2d. Will you be kind enough to state in respect to the memo- 
randa referred to, what these memoranda were, and any matters 
connected with the making of these memoranda. 

Ans. Within a few months after the discovery was made, I sup- 
posed that the time might come when I might find it necessary to 
freshen my memory in regard to matters connected with the ether 
discovery, and I therefore wrote out what I recollected of it up 
to the time of my conferences with Mr. Charles G. Loring. 
These minutes I have had in my possession ever since. I intend- 
ed to have continued them at the time, but I have been prevented 
by occupation or the want of favorable opportunities. 



423 

od. Is this written statement one continuous narration, or on 
loose sheets or bits of paper? 

Ans. It is one continuous narration on sheets of paper not 
sfitched together. I would not pretend to say that it is one con- 
tinued narration in the order in which everything occurred, al- 
though it may have been so. 

4th. At what date, as near as you can ascertain, were your 
first memoranda made ? 

Ans. I don't remember precisely, but in all probability within 
the first four or six months after the ether discovery came out, as 
n£ar as I can recollect. 

5th. Have you any objection to permitting me to examine 
this statement, or narration ? 

Ans. Not the slightest. 

6th. Will you state your position with regard to etherization, 
and its announcement in the fall of 1846, and its history in the 
winter following? Whether you wrote, or prepared any pam- 
phlets, or letters, or communications? If any, what? 

Ans. The only letter which I now recollect of preparing, 1 
think, was the letter to the surgeons of the hospital. T think 
there was one short letter after that, but I won't be certain. The 
only position which I had with regard to it, is what I have stated 
in my answers. 

8th. Will you please state your pecuniary position with regard 
to etherization, what sums you have paid out, if any, on account 
of this matter, what sums received by reason of any connection 
with it? 

Ans. I think I paid out some treasury fee for the patent, and 
some small amount towards the patent in England. I don't 
recollect what these amounts were, nor do I remember that I 
received anything, except that I received from Dr. Morton some 
two or three hundred dollars, when I settled with Dr. Morton, 
and assigned over the papers to him. 

9th. Will you please state about what was the amount paid 
out by you on account of patents, or of matters therewith con- 
nected ? 

Ans. That would be impossible for me to state at this distance 
of time, without examination of my papers. It was not much of 
a sum. 

10th, Can you state how on a settlement of what, the 
amount paid to you by Dr. Morton was made up ? 

Ans. I was very desirous at the time of getting rid of the whole 
affair. I became somewhat disgusted with it. I recollect that 
he made me the proposition to pay me some small sum to transfer 
to him everything connected with the patent, which I did ; that 
is, in America. The particulars, I think, will be found in the 
assignment, which is on record, I believe. 



424 

11th, When was this, the date of this settlement and paymen*' 
by Dr. Morton? 

Ans. I think it was sometime in the latter part of the year 
1846, or about the 1st of January, according to the best of my 
present recollection. 

12th. Did Dr. Morton pay you the amount referred to in your 
answer to 10th interrogatory, in the last of 1846, or about Janu- 
ary 1st? 

Ans. My impression is that he did. 

13th. After that, did Dr. Morton pay any sum or sums of money 
to you ? 

Ans. I think Dr. Morton gave me something like forty pounds 
sterling to be remitted to England, as a donation on his part to 
those who had taken out the patent there. That is all I recollect 
of receiving of him. 

14th. When was this done ? What led Dr. Morton to do this ? 

Ans. I don't remember the precise date. It was sometime in 
the spring of '47, about May 31st, according to the best of my 
recollection. It was a donation made by him to those in England 
who had taken out the patent there, to remunerate them in part 
for their losses, consequent upon the discussion here in relation to 
the discovery and the course things had taken. 

15th. What led Dr. Morton to do this ? Was this done promptly 
by him, or after communications to him from you, or did those per- 
sons write to Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I can't state positively, now, all that led Dr. Morton to 
do this, but I told him that by reason of the course which things 
took here, I had reason to suppose that they would find them- 
selves very much embarrassed in their operations relative to the 
patent. He directed me to discharge all his interest in it. I 
think he wrote me a note, stating that I might abandon all his 
interest in it if I thought proper, which I did. He remitted this 
ium as being about one-third of the expenses which they had been 
put to in I elation to the matter. It was entirely unsolicited on 
their part, according to the best of my recollection now. I might 
have received some letter from them. 

16th. Can you state to whom you remitted this, and the date of 
remitting it ? 

Ans. I can give that information by examining my letter-book. 
My impression is that I remitted it to E. J. Coates, esq., of Lon- 
don. 

17th. Had yon remitted or sent this money to the person or per- 
sons above referred to, before communicating to Dr. Morton about 
this matter ? 

Ans. I had not. 

18th. Did not the sums, or any of them, paid by purchasers of 



425 

licenses to use ether, come into your hands or possession, or under 
your control ? 

Ans. It is possible that some persons might have paid me mo- 
neys for Dr. Morton, which I paid over to him afterwards. I have 
the impression that some did, or that one did at least. 

19th. If there were any such payments to you, did you not re- 
tain the proportion due, belonging and coming to you for your 
interest in the American patent ? 

Ans. That I cannot say now, it is so long ago. 

20th. Can you state what, or about what, amounts Dr. Morton 
received from October, 1846, to January, 1847, for sales of patent 
licenses to use ether ? 

Ans. I cannot. 

21st. Will you please state what Dr. Morton said to you when 
he called at your office on October 1, 1846 ? Can you recall his 
phraseology ? 

Ans. No more than what I have stated in my answer ; that is, 
I cannot state more than I have, generally, there. 

22d. Whether or not. Dr. Jackson called at your office in Oc- 
tober, 1846 ? If aye, when, and for what purpose? 

Ans. All that I remember of Dr. Jackson's calling at my office, 
is what I have stated in my answer. I have no recollection of 
Iiis calhng at any other time. 

23d. Can you state when in October Dr. Jackson called at 
your office ? 

Ans. I think it was the time he signed the papers for the Ameri- 
can patent. It was the latter part of October. 

24th. Had not Dr. Jackson called at your office before the 28th 
of October, 1846 ? 

Ans. Not to my presient recollection. 

25th. Recurring to an evening when you came from the theatre, 
in October, 1846, and saw Dr. Jackson at your father's residence, 
whether his wife, and wife's mother, were vrith him or not ? 

Ans. I remember his wife being with him, but I have no recol- 
lection of his wife's mother being there. 

26th. Can you state what was said by Dr. Jackson about the 
patent matter on this evening ? Where was the conversation had ? 
In what room ? Whether the persons present joined in the con- 
versation ? 

Ans. The conversation with Dr. Jackson, 1 have stated gene- 
rally in my direct answers. It took place in the front room. How 
far all the persons present joined in the conversation, I cannot 
state ; but I remember Mrs. Jackson's joining in it. 

27th. Whether Dr. Jackson stated it was contrary to the prin- 
ciples of liberal science, for a scientific man to take out a patent? 

Ans. I could not state at this time. 

28th. On this evening above referred to, at about what time 
did you get home from the theatre ? How long an interview did 



426 

you have with Dr. Jackson ? Were you alone with him, ia a 
different room from where you found him and your father when 
you came in ? 

Ans. I returned from the theatre directly after the first play 
was over, between nine and ten o'clock. My impression is that 
it was nearer ten than nine. My impression is that Dr. Jackson 
remained there about an hour. T have no recollection of being 
alone with him in any room. 

29th. Whether w^hat conversation you had, on the evening re- 
ferred to, was had so that those present in the room heard your 
conversation ? 

Ans. That I can't remember now. I dare say much of it was 
heard. I have no recollection that anything was attempted to be 
concealed in any way. 

30th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson spoke, then, of 
his objections to patents ? If aye, can you state what he then 
said ? 

Ans. I recollect that he objected to be associated with Dr. Mor- 
ton in the patent, on the ground, as I understood it, that there 
was an odor of quackery about patents, and he had a further ob- 
jection on the ground of what he supposed to be the aotion of the 
Massachusetts Medical Society. He said if Morton was w^illing 
to give him five hundred dollars, he might take it and do what he 
pleased w^ith it. 

31st. What was the result of your conference this evening with 
Dr. Jackson, as to what should be done about the matter of patent ? 

Ans. No particular result that I recollect. He came to see me, 
I did not go to see him. 

32d. Do you remember that you had, on this evening, any con- 
versation w^ith Dr. Jackson as to any difference between the 
scientific and patent law view of discoveries ; if aye, what was this ? 

Ans. I don't remember of having any. 

33d. Do you recollect that Dr. Jackson said that Morton in 
using ether in extracting the tooth of Frost, acted under his direc- 
tion, and that you said that, in a technical sense, Morton made 
the application ? 

Ans. No, sir, I have not the sli2;htest recollection of anything 
of the kind ; the fact is, I did not know the man's name. There 
was no cause for any such conversation that I now recollect of. 

34th. Do you remember that Dr. Jackson on this evening, said 
anything about inhaling ether to prevent the pain in the throat 
arising from breathing chlorine §as ? 
^^* Ans. No. Dr. Jackson never said anything of that kind to me. 

35th. On this evening referred to, what was the chief subject of 
your conversation with Dr. Jackson ? 

Ans. It was in regard to taking out the patent with Dr. Morton ^ 

36th, Whether you witnessed any, and if any, how many opera- 



427 

tions in the office of Dr. Morton, in October, 1846, and Nove«i- 
ber of that year ? 

Ans. I don't recollect now any operation that I witnessed there. 
It is possible I might have, but I can't say. 

37th. Hox many times, so far as you can state it, were you in 
Dr. Morton's office during the month of October, 1846 ? 

Ans. I can't state. 

38th. Oan you state about how many times, — whether several 
or a few times, or how otherwise ? 

Ans. I think now it must have been a few times, not many times. 

39th. On the evening at your house above referred to, was 
anything said about the trials of ether at the Massachusetts Gen- 
eral Hospital ? 

Ans. It is possible there might have been something said. I 
have a vague impression that there was ; I can't recollect the 
particulars now, if any. 

40th. In this evening, did Dr. Jackson speak of transferring 
the use of it to Dr. Morton in his practice, or of a quit claim to 
him of this use for five hundred dollars ? 

Ans. No, sir, not to my remembrance; I understood him to say 
that he might take the whole matter and do what he pleased with 
it, upon giving him five hundred dollars. 

41st. In preparing the specification for the patent, did you 
confer with Dr. Jackson, or call on him about the different kinds 
of ether? 

Ans. I did not. 

42d. Do you not remember that Dr. Jackson spoke with you 
of one of the kinds of ether, the nitric, mentioned in the patent, 
that it was dangerous and would produce death? 

Ans. No, I have no reollection of anything of the kind. 

43d. Will you state the amount, the proportion to the whole, 
of your interest in the American patent ? 

Ans. I think it was one quarter. 

44th. Can you state when the arrangement for this one quarter 
was concluded, and when the discussion of this, of how much it 
would be, w^as begun with Dr. Morton ? In what part of October ? 

Ans. I believe I have stated that in my direct answers. 

45th. Will you please state it in this connection ? 

Ans. I think it was about the twenty-first of October. 

46th. Was there any discussion with Dr. Morton as to how 
much your interest should be: how large or small a proportion of 
the whole ? 

Ans. I remember when it was proposed that I should be inter- 
ested, I suggested that Dr. Jackson should have one-third, Dr. 
Moj'ton another third, and I another. Dr. Morton demurred to 
that and stated to me that if I would aid him in the preparation 
of the papers and getting of the patent, that he would give me 
one quarter. 



428 

47th. Do you remember that you stated that you found the 
Doctor so objecting to patents that you felt afraid he would back 
out from signing the papers, before you could draw them ? 

Ans. No, I do not. 

48th. Do you remember, in urging Dr. Jackson about the pat- 
ent, you stated that there being no Academy of Sciences here, the 
Patent Office was the only place where he could file any papers 
which would record the discovery in this country ? 

Ans. I have no recollection whatever of speaking of any Acad- 
emy of Sciences in any w^ay. I might have given him to under- 
stand that it would be advisable to join with Dr. Morton in the 
patent, >as the record in the Patent Office would be of service to 
Dr. Jackson in the way of proving that there was credit due him 
in the matter. 

49th. What, if anything, do you recall to mind of saying to 
Dr. Jackson about the secret archives of the Patent Office ? 

Ans. I don't remember anything. I don't remember why I 
should say anything to him about the secret archives. I might 
have said something to him about it in connection with his filing 
a caveat for an alleged discovery of his in reference to a prepar- 
ation of gold, such as I have already mentioned. 

50th. What, in connection with the ether patent, was said about 
the secret archives ? Is there any such department, or place, in 
the Patent Office ? If aye, for what purpose, and how long has 
it been so in the Patent Office ? 

Ans. Nothing was said about it to my recollection. There is 
such a department in the Patent Office, which ha? been established 
since 1836. It is a part of the Patent Office where eaveats and 
certain other papers are filed in secresy, in accordance with the 
law . 

51st. In this conversation with you at your house, did Dr. 
Jacksort say that Morton could not take out a patent, and did you 
state that he would, for making an application of the use of ether, 
which, in the eye or sense of the patent law, he had done? 

Ans. As I have stated before, I have no recollection of having 
filed any caveat in the matter, though it is possible that I did. 
I don't think there was one. I have no recollection that Dr. 
Jackson said that Morton could not take out a patent. I was 
under the belief that Dr. Morton would apply for one, because I 
had reason to suppose that he thought he could do so, and I urged 
Dr. Jackson to associate with him, in order that he. Dr. Jackson, 
might gain both profit and credit. 

52d. What, if anything, do you recollect of saying to the 
effect that Morton would endeavor for the application for the use 
of ether, to get a patent ? 

Ans. I don't recollect of saying anything more than what I 
have stated generally, I don't pretend to give the exact words. 



429 

53cl. D® you recollect that you sent word to Dr. Jackson's 
house that he must come and sign the ether patent papers, before 
he left for the south, on the day the papers were signed by him. 
in your office ? what was the date of signing the papers ? 

Ans. I did not know that he was going to the south, and have 
no recollection of saying it. I recollect of going up to his place, 
and walked down with him. He did not tell me he was going 
away. The papers were signed on the 27th of October. 

54th. How many times was Dr. Jackson in your office, to sign 
any papers in reference to the patent ? 

Ans, Twice. 

55th. How long were you engaged in drawing up the papers 
for the application for the ether patent for this country ? 

Ans. I might have been, perhaps, a couple of days — two or 
three days. I don't remember the exact time. 

56th. Can you state how long the papers for the American 
patent were drawn before October 27, 1846 ? 

Ans. I cannot, now, probably not more than a day, 

57th. Had tliey not been partially drawn, or sketched, and 
lying aside for some little time, as a week, or ten days? 

Ans. No, sir. 

58th. How many times before this 27th October, had you had 
interviews with Dr. .Jackson in the month of October? 

Ans. I can't state beyond what I have stated in the answer to 
the direct interrogatories. I have no recollection of any other 
interviews than what I have stated there. 

59th. In your interviews with Dr. Jackson before the patent 
papers were signed, had you spoken to him of the course taken 
by merchants, who had no personal use of a discovery made by 
them — to take out a patent and transfer to others? If aye, what 
was this, as stated by you? 

Ans. I don't remember anything of the kind. 

60th. When Dr. Jackson signed papers on 27th October, 1846, 
who was present? Why did you go for him? Was Dr. Morton 
present? 

Ans. I don't remember of any one being present. It is pos- 
sible there might have been. I recollect, there was a young man 
in my office by the name of Leighton, whose name appears as a 
witness. I probably called him in to witness the signing. I can't 
say whether Dr. Morton was present. He might have been in 
before, or after, to sign on his part, or he might have been pre- 
sent and signed at the time. I went for Dr. Jackson to come 
down and sign the papers, because they were ready for his sig- 
nature. 

61st. Do you not remember that Dr. Morton was not present 
when Dr. Jackson signed the paper — that Dr. Jackson then, in 
signing, said, that Dr. Morton could not sign that, for he had not 



430 

invented or discovered anything, as stated there in that specifica- 
tion? 

Ans. I am positive that he never said anything of that kind. 
I am rather inclined to the opinion that Morton was not present, 
though I could not say for a certainty. 

62d. Do you remember that, on this same 27th October, or on 
the next day, you either sent or went for Dr. Morton? 

Ans. I don't remembei? now about that. I might possibly have 
sent to him. 

63d. Do you remember, that on the 27th or 28th of October, 
you received a transfer or assignment from Dr. Morton of your 
interest in the ether patent? 

Ans. I think the assignment bears even date with the signing 
of the papers. The date, however, will be found by examining 
the document. 

64th. Was Dr. Jackson present w^hen that assignment was 
made by Dr. Morton? 

Ans. I don't think he was. 

65th. When did Dr. Jackson first learn from you of your in- 
terest in the patent ? 

Ans. I can't recollect that. 

66th. Did Dr. Jackson hear of this before November or Decem- 
ber following ? 

Ans. I don't know^ when Dr. Jackson heard of that. If I did 
not mention it to Dr. Jackson, it was from no desire to conceal it 
from him, and only perhaps from a desire common to every one, 
to keep his own business to himself. 

67th. Do you remember to have had with you, on November 
15th, the proofs of an article published by Dr. Henry J. Bigelow 
in the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal of November 18th, 
1846? 

Ans. I recollect that Dr. Bigelow brought in the article, but 
whether in manuscript or in the proof-sheets I am not certain. I 
feel pretty certain that it was the proof-sheets. The only time I 
ever saw the article was on that evening, at Dr. Gould's. 

68th. Do you not remember that, on the 15th November, the 
Sunday at Dr. Jackson's house, you gave Dr. Jackson a copy of 
the proof-sheets ? 

Ans. No, certainly. I never had them. I never saw them till 
Dr. Bigelow brought them out on that evening, or knew anything 
about them, to my present recollection. 

69th. Do you remember that Dr. Jackson came in at Dr. Gould's 
while you were there on November 15th ? 

Ans. Yes, I do. I recollect perfectly well what was said at 
the time of his coming. 

70th. Can you state what he first said, and what those present 
were doing at the table at the time ? 



43i 

Ans. I cannot state what he first said, nor can I remember what 
those at the table were doing at the time. 

71st. Whether you remember that Dr. Gould said, '*! am glad 
to see you and Dr. Morton face to face, and I've no doubt but 
that, if' you state your claims, Morton will fully admit what you 
state;" and that Dr. Jackson stated, 1st, that he first discovered 
that the inhalation of ether vapor would produce insensibility to 
pain ; 2d, that he committed this discovery to Morton, and re- 
quested him to employ it in the extraction of teeth ? 

Ans. I recollect to this effect : that Dr. Gould and I had some 
conversation in regard to matters between Drs. Morton and Jack- 
son, and Dr. Gould remarked as 1 have stated in my direct an- 
swers. I do not remember that Dr. Jackson stated- that he 
first discovered that the inhalation of ether vapor would produce 
insensibility. I remember his stating that he suggested to Dr. 
Morton to try it upon a refractory patient. 

72d. Whether you remember that Dr. Bigelow said to Dr. 
Jackson, " Then you claim that Morton was nothing but your 
tool?" and that Dr. Jackson replied, "An intelligent instru- 
ment ?" 

Ang. I do not. -^^^ 

73d. Whether you remember that Dr. Gould said anything 
about its being providential that they who were present had met 
together that evening ? 

Ans. I have no distinct recollection of anything of that kind, 
though I have a faint impression that he might have said some- 
thing of the kind. 

74th. Whether you remember that Dr. Bigelow was urgent 
about the publication of this article? 

Ans. I do. He wr^s urgent about having it made satisfactory. 
It was tfo go to press thi next morning, I believe. 

75th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson, objecting to 
his publication, said, that if he did, he should reply to his article? 
Ans. I do not. 

76th. Has not Dr. Jackson, for many years, been retired from 
all surgical practice ? If aye, how many ? 
Ans. I can't say. I have so understood it. 
77th. For several years, was not Dr. Jackson absent from Bos- 
ton, much of the time, on surveys ? Can you state on what years 
he w^as away at Lake Superior, in the employ of the U. S. gov- 
ernment ? 

Ans. I know that he was absent much of his time on his geo- 
logical surveys of Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. I 
don't know when he was away at Lake Superior. 

78th. Will you please look at this paper, and state whether, on 
the Sunday afternoon of November 15tb, you read it over with 



J^s* 



432 

Dr. Jackson, or whether you handed it to Dr. Bigelow, or had 
any discussion about it with Dr. Bigelow^ ? 

Ans. I never saw the paper before to my knowledge. I have 
no recollection of such a paper. (This paper is annex-^d, marked 
A.) J. P. P. 

79th. Referring now to the interview with Mr. Hayes of Nov. 
16th, and the previous int« rviews you had with Mr. Hayes, 
whether, or not, in these, and in the first you had with him con- 
cerning the matter of the percentage, he stated that he was acting 
under the advice of Charles G. Lorin^, Esq. ? 

Ans. All I can recollect is that Mr. Hayes informed me 
that Mr. Loring was counsel with him. I have stated in my direct 
answers when he first told me this. 

80th. Whether or not, on Nov. 16th, you gave Mr. Hayes as- 
surances that you would do all in your power to induce Morton 
to pay ten per cent., and that you had no doubt he would do this? 

Ans. I have no recollection of telling him all that. I might 
have stated to him that I would do all in my power to make Dr. 
Morton do what w^as fair, but I distinctly told him, or gave him 
to understand, that he must make his own terms with Dr. Morton - 

81st. Whether or not you stated to Mr. Hayes, after first dis- 
cussing this proposition with him, of inducing Dr, Morton to pay 
ten per cent., that you had seen Dr. Morton, and that he had 
agreed to do this? 

Ans. No, sir. I have no recollection of anything of the kind. 
On the contrary. I have no reason to believe that I made any re- 
mark of the kind. 

82d. Whether or not you knew that the letters referred to in 
your statement about the 16th of November, were, in consequence 
of the interview of Mr. Hayes and of Dr. Jackson with you, kept 
back and not sent to Europe till the next steamer was to sail? 

Ans. I can't say. I do not know. I have an indistinct im- 
pression of having heard something of the kind. 

83d. Whether you remember, during the early months after 
October, 1846, in speaking of the expected profits to arise from 
the sale of " licenses'' to use ether, of saying something, if aye, 
w^hat, of driving in your carriage from the proceeds of your share 
in this ? 

Ans. No, I do not. I don't think I ever made any remark of 
that kind. 

84th. What do jou remember to have said, if anything, just 
after the patent w^as signed by Dr. Jackson, that you had to de- 
ceive the Doctor a little, before he would sign the papers ? 

Ans. Nothing. I have not the slightest idea in the world that 
I ever made any remark of the kind, for I recollect no cause for 
such, nor do I believe there ever was such. 

S5th. What do you remember to have said to Dr. Jackson 



433 

about his entering- into obligations not to reclaim the patent for 
a number of years ? What was this ? 

Ans. Nothing. 

86th. What, if anything, about Morton's putting his property 
out of his hands, so that Dr. Jackson could not get anything from 
the hand of Dr. Morton. 

Ans. I don't remember anything. 

87th. Do you remember to have said to Dr. Morton that, since 
Dr. C. T. Jackson had suggested the use of the ether, that his 
name must be ia the patent, or it would be in danger of being in- 
validated by Dr. Jackson's testimony, or words to the same effect ? 

Ans. I probably informed Dr. Morton that under the impression 
which I then had, that this was a joint discovery, Dr. Jackson's 
name should be in it, to conform to law. I remember no other 
statement made to him upon this point. 

88th. Did you or not say that it must be patented as a joint 
discovery, or invention, regarding Dr. Jackson as the discoverer,, 
and Dr. Morton as making the practical application of it, or words 
to the same effect ? 

Ans. I never regarded Dr. Jackson as the discoverer, and there- <S3i 
fore could not have said that. 

89th. Did you or not c ill upon Dr. Jackson to urge him to 
allow his name to be used in soliciting the patent for the dis- 
covery of etherization ? And if aye, can you state how often ? 

Ans. I think I called on him once. 

90th. Whether or not you had, in 1846 or 1847, conferences 
with Dr. H. J. Bigelow and discussions with him as to differ- 
ences between discovery in a legal sense, and in a scientific point 
of view — if aye, can you state the substance of this matter? 
.^, Ans. I don't remember any. 

•^ 91st. Whether or not you had some discussions with Dr. Mor- 
ton as to the amount of your interest in the foreign patent ? 

Ans. I had no particular discussion, more than what I have 
stated in my direct answers, that I now recollect. 

92d. Whether you remember a w^alk over the mill dam, or to 
Brighton, or towards Brighton, with Dr. Morton, or in company 
with him, when this matter of the foreign patent was discussed ? 

Ans. I do not. 

93d. Whether you remember that, in discussing this matter of 
the foreign patents, your demand was of eighty-hundred ths of the 
sales under those foreign patents ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

94th. Whether you remember stating to Dr. Morton that you 
should have eighty per cent, of the foreign patents for managing 
Dr. Jackson? 

Ans. No. 

95th. What was the amount agreed on as your interest in the 
foreign patents ? 
28 



434 

Ans. I think they were to be taken out, and that whatever 
amount might be realized to me of net profits were to be divided 
between Morton aud myself. 

96th. Whether you remember that, after your letter to the 
surgeons of the hospital was wTitten, there was some delay in 
your signing this letter ? 

Ans. I don't remember any particular delay, or any uelay from 
any particular cause. I might not have signed it on the instant 
I wrote it. I presume, however, it was signed soon after it was- 
copied by the clerk, as I have no impression that it was copied. 

97th. Whether there was not a delay in signing it, or in finish- 
ing this letter, till a sum of two hundred dollars was Daid ? 
Ans. I don't recollect anything of the kind. 
98th. As to Dr. Morton's position in relation to the dentists in 
Boston, during the early months after the announcement of the 
ether discovery, in the fall of 1846 : would Dr. Morton sell any 
licenses to use ether to any Boston dentist ? 

Ans. I can't speak positively upon that point ; but 1 have an 
impression that there was some objection which he made to it. I 
think I advised him on that subject, that it would operate to his 
injury to pursue a course of that kind. 

99th. Whether you remember to have heard Dr. Morton say 
that he *^ could pull out all the teeth that were to be pulled," or 
that he was *' sufficient for the dentistry of Boston ?" 

Ans. That expression I have heard before; but have no recol- 
leotion of any time when I heard him make it, or of his having 
made it. I have an impression, however, that I did hear him 
make some such remark. 

100th. Whether you remember, in November or December, 
1846, that you said to Dr. .Jackson Ihat Dr. Morton had a sum 
of money to pay him as the amount due to him from the sale of 
licenses to use ether under the oatents ? 
Ans. I don't remember. 

_ R. H. EDDY, 

A. 

Dr. Jackson very reluctantly consented to the patentings of this 
discovery or invention, and that reluctance is explicitly set forth 
in the application filed at th^e patent office, but there seemed to be 
no other way in which he could secure to himself the credit and 
honor of the discovery, with his proportionate reward for the same, 
and he was unwilling to prevent Dr. Morton from enjoying the 
benefit of his proportion, he having executed the experiments at 
Dr. Jackson's proposal and by his directions and advice, and thus 
become associated in the matter. Since Dr. Morton took upon 
himself the executive duty of applying the ether vapor, and paid 
the expenses of patentings. Dr. Jack«on assigned his right in the 



435 

patent to him, and is to receive a tenth part of the net proceeds 
from sales of licenses in this country. Arrangement? of a similar 
character will probably be made for its use in Europe. The com- 
missioner was requested by Dr. J. to issue the letters patent in the 
name of Dr. Morton, to whom he had assigned his right before the 
patent w^as granted. 

Dr. Bigelow is requested to insert the above paragraph in his 
article. If he does not wish to take the respo-nsibility, he will 
please say that Dr. J. requests him to insert it. 
Respectfully, your obedient servant, 

C. T. JACKSON. 
Sunday, JVovember 15, 1846. 

This is the paper referred to in this deponent's answer to the 
78th cross interrogatory, as annexed and marked A. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 



Commonwealth of Massachusetts, , 

' ' ss. 



Suffolk. \ 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the de- 
position, in perpetuam, of R. H. Eddy, taken before us upon the 
petition of William T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this com- 
monwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Two Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Laic\. 
Boston, January 11, 1853. 



I, Robert J. Burbank, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and As to the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Counsellor at' Law, being first 'f^^°^, ®^ 
duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by R. sidons of 
H. Dana, jr., Esq., counsel for Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton : Leavitt, 

1st. What is your residence ? Are you and how long have you ^P<^^^' '^^^ 
been a member of the Boston bar ? Harden. 

Ans. I reside in Boston. lama member of the Boston bar, 
and have been such for about seven years. 

2d. Did you, in 1847, take down in writing the statements of 
certain persons in Dr. Morton's employment, respectine the ether 
discovery ? If so, when, and of whom ? 



436 ' 

Ans. I did, in March, about the 23(1, lB47, as near as I can 
now recollect. William P. Leavitt was one. Thomas Spear, jr., 
and Dr. Hajden were the others. 

3d. Please state where, in what room or rooms, and under 
what circumstances, these statements were taken down? 

Ans. It was in one of Dr. Morton's rooms connected with his 
office, No. 19 Tremont Row. It was not in the room where he 
performed his operations, but in what I think he then styled the 
mechariical department. That room was chosen on account of 
the frequent interruptions from calls from patients in the other. 
1 was requested by Dr. Morton to take these statements in wri- 
ting. I told him I would do so and was then ready. He said, 
'' we are so very busy, I would like to have you go over there, 
lio my office, instead of taking them here.'' I assented to it, and 
-w€iit over. I took these statements the same as I should take 
the statements of any person. I thiiik Mr. Leavitt gave his hrst. 
I wont be certain. I commenced and took the statements of 
those three that afternoon. It occupied till after dark, I am 
>iure. 

4th. Who w^as present ? If Dr. Morton, how much of the 
time, and what part did he take ? So as to the others ? 

Ans. The three persons I have named were present, not ail the 
time, but in and out, about their business in that department. 
One Mr. Warren, I think they called him. Dr. Warren was in 
once or twice during the afternoon. I think he was connected 
with the office in some way at that time, how, I don't know. 
Dr. Morton was present when I first went there. He went into 
the room with me. He was there but a small part of the time 
during the afternoon. He was engaged below. I recollect dis- 
tinctly the apparatus by which he was called down. He was up 
several times, and then there would come a whistle through a 
long tube, and then a call, and he would go down. I don't re- 
collect that he took any part at all. He told me what he wish- 
ed me to do before I went there, I received no further instruc- 
tions from him. The others took no part in the matter, but to 
give their statements, which I took down.. I sometimes interro- 
o-ated them, but I remember distinctly asking each of them to 
give the facts in reference to the discovery by Dr. Morton, in the 
precise order in which the facts occurred. The reason why I re- 
member this, and why I so requested them, was, because, from 
the reports which I had heard of the matter, before I went there, 
I believed that Dr. Jackson w^as the discoverer, and I went there 
a disbeliever in Dr. Morton's claims, and I therefore desired to 
get an accurate statement from them, for my own information, 
[and I recollect that I came away with my mind entirely 
changed in reference to the matter.] Mr. Warren came into the 



437 

room twice or three times during the afternoon, and made some 
such inquiry as this: *^How are you getting along?" "Do you 
want any assistance V He rendered no assistance. 

(The part in brackets objected to. J. P. P.) 

0th. Were their oaths taken, and if not, v/hy not ? Did they 
sign them ? 

Ans. I think their oaths were not taken. They were not by 
me. I was not then a justice of the peace, our statute requiring 
two years' practice before the giving of the commission. I am 
very positive that they did not sign then, and in my presence. 

6th. Did you then know Don Pedro Wilson ? Was he present 
at any of the times ? Was he, or any person, requested to leave 
the room, or not to come into it ? 

Ans. I can't say that I then knew him. I have known him 
since pretty well. I now know him. He was not present in 
that room any of the time, to my recollection: and if he had 
been present, I am sure that I should have recollected it. Neither 
he, nor any person, was requested to leave the room or not come 
into it — nothing of the kind. 

7th. Did Dr. Morton say anything to any oi the witnesses, or 
in their presence, respecting the subject upon which they were 
testifying ? 

Ans. I do not recollect positively as to that. If he said any- 
thing, it was but a wor<i or two, because he was in the room but 
very little. He might have said something to them, or in their 
presence, but it could not have been much, as he came into the 
room and inquired " What they had stated," " How far we 
had got along," or " What had happened in his absence vv^hile 
down stairs." 

8th, Did he prompt them, or furnish them with any dates or 
facts, or make them any assurances as to facts ? 

Ans. Not the slightest, to my recollection. I should have 
recollected it, because, under the impressions which I had w^hen 
I went there, I should not have allowed it. Their said state- 
ments appeared to be candidly given, and they w^ere faithfully 
taken down by me. 

9th. Answer the same as to Mr. Warren ? 

Ans. As to Mr. Warren, I will say no. 

10th, Did either witness, and if so, how far, hear or know what 
the others testified to ? 

Ans. When I first went there, I think the three who gave 
their statements were present. While one w?as giving his state- 
ment, the others were about their work. They were" very busily 
engaged, apparently, and I should think several times* in the 
course of the afternoon went out of the room. Thev seemed to 



438 

be busy up stairs and down. I don't know where they went 
when they went out of the room, but they seemed to be on busi- 
ness. I caa't say whether either heard, or not, what the others 
testified to, but I should thinii that they could have heard very 
little. It was not an occasion for a witness to speak loud, as 
though on the stand, and I had them by the table near me. I 
should think it very difficult for them to have heard. They 
might have heard some portions of it. 

11th. Did any of these witnesses, and how far, apply to any 
other for facts or aid of any kind, or did any one prompt or aid 
another ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that they did. 

12th. If they had, should you have observed it, and why ? 

Ans. I should think that I should have observed it, and for 
the reson before stated. 

13th. Had you, or had any of the witnesses, a memorandum ? 

Ans. I had none, and I do not recollect that any of the wit- 
nesses had any. 

14th. Who committed them to writing ? How ? 

Ans. I committed them to writing. I wrote them down as 
they gave it. I don't know that in every case I gave the precise 
words, but I did the substance. 

15th. At the time you took these statements, was there anything 
tending to detract Irom the value of these depositions, or any of 
them, as to the state or condition of the witnesses, or any in- 
fluences they seemed to be imder, or their manner of testifying 

Ans. Not in the slightest. 

16th. Did you take the statement of Mr. Francis Whitman ? 
When and where ? How ? 

Ans. I think I did not take his statement in full. I think I 
was about to take it that night, but I had not time. I have a 
sort of recollection that his statement came to me in some form 
or other, but I think I did not take it as I did the others. 

17th. At the time you took these statements, on which side were 
your sympathies and prejudices, if either, and how much so ? 
From what cause ? 

(Objected to as immaterial.) 

Ans. When I commenced, they were on the side of Dr. Jack- 
son, for I thought very highly of him. I had seen him at my 
father's, and at Dartmouth College, w^hen he surveyed the State 
of New Hampshire, and I thought he was more likely to have 
been the discoverer. I had received these prejudices from the 
reports which I had heard. When I left that night my opinion 
was changed. I had heard nothing more about it than what the 
public had. I might have heard something from Morton against 



9 



439 

Dr. Jackson's claim, but tlie reports upon which 1 based niy 
opinion were such as the community had at large. 

Cross-interrogatories by A. Jackson, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. What was youf lirst acquaintance with Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. 1 was first introduced to him by Mr. O. G. Peabody, at 
my office ; it was in relation to some business he wanted me to do 
for him ; this was in the latter part of 1846. 

2d, Betw^een the time referred to in 1846 and the time he came 
to your office, about these statements, had you done any business 
for him ? How often ? 

Ans. I had ; I w^ent out West for him in a matter, and was 
gone a month and a half for him ; it was a matter not con- 
nected with the ether discovery ; I had done business for him 
pretty frequently. 

3d. What, if you remember, did Dr. Morton say when he came^ 
about your taking these statements of the witnesses, and when 
was this ? 

I think he said that he was about to get up a statement of his 
merits in the ether controversy; and I think, he gave me a state- 
ment in my office of what had been done by him and others ; this 
was on the very day when I took the statements ; in the forepart 
of the day, as near as I can recollect. 

4th „ Do you recollect what you stated to the witnesses, or 
what Dr. Morton did, when you went with him to his rooms on 
the day the statements were reduced to writing? 

Ans. I do not recollect what either of us stated ; the subject 
was introduced as we went into the room. I think I was intro- 
duced to one or two of the witnesses ; I think I did not know- 
Spear or Leavitt at that time ; I think I had seen Hayden. 

5th, Whether you were brief in taking the statements ? 

Ans. I should think we commenced about three o'clock, and it 
took till dark ; it might have been four o'clock ; it was along in 
the afternoon. 

6th. Whether you were brief in taking the statement of Lea- 
vitt, or were you slow, deliberate, taking full time? 

Ans. I can't recollect that there was any difference in time or 
manner in taking has from the others. 

7th. Whether Leavitt was in haste to finish his statement ? 

Ans, I can't recollect that; it has been so long since that I 
can't recollect the minutiae. 

8th, Was Leavitt, or any of the witnesses, in haste to finish 
and go to his work, or was he, or any of them, called away to his 
work while you were at Dr. Morton's rooms? 

Ans, I can't recollect that ; I don't recollect that that was 
the case with either witness. 



440 

9th. Whether you recollect that Wm. P. Leavitt used these 
words: "That, about one week after Dr. Hayden came to prac^ 
tice dentistry in connection with Dr. Morton, with whom I was 
then a student, that is to say, about the 1st of July, 1846?'' 

Ans. I can't, without refreshing my recollection by an ex- 
amination of those depositions, and I can't recollect but he did 
say it. What he did say was carefully taken down by me at the 
time. 

10th. Will you please look at Leavitt's statement, and state 
whether he used those words above stated in the fiinth cross-in- 
terrogatory, or whether that was your language ? 

Ans. I should think that was his statement, but I can't tell 
without examining the original. The phrase '^that is to say," I 
might have added. 

11th. Whether or not, in taken the statements of the witnesses 
at Dr. Morton's rooms, you took down the exact language of the 
witnesses, or the substance of it? whether you asked many ques- 
tions of the witnesses? 

Ans. I intended to take down their exact language. I might, in 
some instances, have taken the substance, but invariably, on doing 
so, read the same over to them for their correction or adoption. 
I did not ask many questions. I remember that I occasionally 
put this interrogatory to them, more tJian any other, "what hap- 
pened next,'^ or "what was said next." 

12th. Whether you recollect that you put many questions to 
Leavitfe in taken his statement ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that there was any different ceremony, 
or manner adopted in taking his statement from that of the others. 
It did not take a great while to take the whole of them. 

13th. S© far as you can state^ on now looking at the statements 
in print of these witnesses, hov7 may questions did you put to 
each witness ? 

Ans. I cannot tell, I might have put a half dozen, not many. 
I did not intend to lead them, I wanted to satisfy my curiosity, 
as much as anything, as to the true merits of Dr. Morton in the 
ether controversy. 

14th. Whether, in taking the statements referred to by you, 
as to the dates given by the parties, they gave the dates readil}-, 
promptly, or with hesitation, delay ? 

Ans. I should think, from the best of my recollection, they did 
give these statements as to dates promptly, but deliberately. Some 
of them they gave promptly. I remember they appeared ex- 
ceedingly fair. 

15th. Whether or not, with reference or suggestion, one witness 
to another, the statements were given by them ? 

Ans. I don't recollect that thev were. 



44i 

16th. By "nothing of the kind/' in answer to your sixth direct 
interrogatory, whether you mean absolutely, positively so, or 
merely whether you did not hear of any request to any person 
not to come into the room? 

Ans. I mean that I did not hear of any such request. I think 
I should have heard such a request, had it been made, for I was 
exceedingly circumspect, for the roason I have stated in my pre- 
vious answers. 

17th. Referring to your answer to the 7th interrogatory, did 
you pause and read what had been stated, while Dr. Morton was 
away down stairs, on his return after ^n absence ? 

Ans. I think I might have done so, but I don't now recollect. 
My impression is that I did, or gave him the substance of it. I 
cannot state. 

18th. Whether you remember any suggestions or statements of 
his, if any, after your answer to his inquiries on his return to the 
room ? 

Ans. I do not. He might have made some reply, but I do not 
recollect. It has been so long since, that I cannot now state. 

19th. In one answer you spoke of " one Mr. Warren — I think 
they called him Dr. Warren." What do you know of his writ- 
ing for Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I never saw him write for Dr. Morton. I think I heard 
him slate that he was writing something for Dr. Morton, or had 
been. 

20th. Were the statements of the witnesses taken by you ever 
sworn to ? 

Ans. I cannot recollect. 

ROBERT J. BURBANK. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, j 

Suffolk Counti/. ] ^^ '' 

We hereby certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the de- 
position in perpetuam of Robert J. Burbank, taken before us 
upon the petition of Dr. William T. G. Morton, under the statutes 
of this Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Two Justices of the Peace and Oounsellors at Law. 
Boston,. January 13, 1853. 



442 



I, Edward Warren, of the city of New York, of lawful age, 
being first duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogato- 
ries by R. H. i)ana, jr., Esq,, counsel for Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton : 
1st. What is your residence ? What was it in 1846 ? 
Ans. I reside in New York ; I resided in Boston in 1846. 
2d. How long and how intimately have you known Dr. C T. 
Jackson? 
Relations Ans. I first became acquainted with Dr. Jackson in 1836 or 
wi«h^' ^Dr! -^^^'^ '■ ^ consider that I have known him intimately ; I have had 
Jactson. some correspondence w^ith him ; he has been often at our bouse, 
and I have often been to his laboratory ; I was in the habit of 
meeting him often, and have been on very friendly terms w^ith 
him. 

3d. Please state all your personal knowledge of the discovery 
and introduction into use of ether as an ansesthetic agent. 

Ans. I was, at that time, living in a family very intimate with 
Dr. Jackson's family, and I heard of it through an intimate friend. 
D J k '^' ^^ course, became interested, and I w^ent immediately to Dr. 
son's claim Jackson, about the last of November, 1846, but I can't give the 
ia Noyem- exact date. Up to this time he had kept the article itself a 
r^% ?^P' secret, so far as I could ascertain, and my first inquiry was to know 
remunera- "^^^t it was — what this '^ compound," as they called it, was. 
tion by The Doctor said he did not like to tell me what it was, and I 
Morton ten Wiqh asked him why he did not compel Morton to do him justice 
per cen . |^^^ making the secret known. He replied by saying that he 
should do so: that, if ten per cent, on foreign sales, as well as on 
sales made in this country, were not allowed him, he should wTite 
out to Europe and publish the whole thing to the world. I urged 
him to disclose the nature of the agent used, as, up to this time, 
the last of November, it had been studiously kept as a secret- 
He declined, saying that it \v^s easily found out : that the public 
would soon know all about it ; and that, at any rate, if he was 
not properly remunerated, he "would blow the whole thing up." 
The claim above made, of ten per cent, of domestic and foreign 
sales under the patent, was all he made as his interest in the mat- 
ter. That was the extent of his claim, made to me, up to this 
time. We then had a long conversation in reference to the whole 
subject of this discovery. I asked him as to the safety of this 
Contraat agent. He answered, and here I pretend to give his own words, 
liis%reslS ^^^^ "it should be used with the greatest care ; and that it would 
claim that be very likely to injure the brain if repeated." He furthermore 
iie had as- added that there would be great danger in giving it for a long 
certained ^j^g q^ ^ny one occasion, or of repeating it, as, if it were, 
safety ia asphyxia, coma, or even death itself might ensue. I then asked 
1842. Dr. Jackson what share he claimed in the discovery. He replied 



443 

by saying that the so-called discovery was not his; that Dr. Express 
Morton was responsible for it ; that he was not answerable for ^^^ ^^^ q^^ 
the results, fearinsj that accidents might ensue from the use of Jackson 
this ''Compound/' and that, therefore, he would refer me to Dr.*battlie«*<?- 
Morton for further information. What I have stated above is the "^J^^f^ ^'^; 
silbstance of a long conversation I had with him at that time, so not kis, And 
far as I can recollect it, I recollect very distimctly w^hat I have that Ds. 
sfatpH Morton 

4th. What did Dr. Jackson say, if anything, about any previous stbhfortt,' 

experiments or observations of his own ? Now, he 

Ans. I can't recollect that he alluded to that subject. tf^lja^. 

5th. What did he say that he had advised or suggested to Dr. H^) ""was 

Morton ? alont re- 

Ans. My belief is, that he stated to me that this new agent was '^^^Tw+he 
first mentioned by Morton, and that Morton asked him as to its discovery 
nature and safety, and inquired if he could not give it to his was kis. 
patients. Dr. Jackson stated that he replied in the affirmative. ^ , 
There was considei^able conversation on this subject, but I am statement 
unable to recall distinctly anything further. that Mor- 

6th. At this time did you know' Dr. Morton? What w^as the ton had 
object of your visit to Dr. Jackson ? ether ^^and 

Ans. I n«ver had known Dr. Morton. I had two objects in his opinion 
visiting Dr. Jackson. The first w^as to ascertain something in of it* 

relation to the nature of the new discovery, and the second was ^^ ^^^' 
to make some pecuniary arrangement, by which I could visit witness 
Europe on matters pertaining to it. With regard to pecuniary then unac- 
matters, Dr. Jackson distinctly stated that he had nothing to do ^X^^Mor 
with them, and referred me to R. H. Eddy, esq., and Dr. Morton ton. 
himself. 

7th. What did you do thereupon? 

Ans. I went immediately to Dr. Morton and introduced myself, 
saying that Dr. Jackson had referred me to him in relation to the 
whole matter. 

8th. Are you conscious of any personal prejudice or preference 
in favor of Dr. Morton rather than Dr. Jackson, irrespective of 
the merits of their claims ? 

Ans. No, I certainly am not. My preferences are ail with Dr, 
Jackson, having previously been on the most friendly terms with 
him. 

9th. If, in this conversation, Dr. Jackson had said that he had ^ . . 
himself made any experiment, or observation, before his inter- of previous 
view with Dr. Merton, from which he inferred or suspected that experi- 
this agent would produce total insensibility, or had said anything °^®°*- 
to that effect, should you or not remember it ? 

Ans. I think I should have remembered it. My opinion is that 
he did not say anything on the subject. 



444 

CrosS'inter rogatories by A. Jackson, jr., Esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st. Will you state what was your situation with Dr. Morton, 
after your connection with him,— what you did in this connection 
with him, — what interest, if any, you had in his ether patent, — 
what books, letters, or pamphlets you wrote, &c. ? 

Ans. We had a great variety of connections. When I went to 
Washington, I was to have a small per centage of the sales which 
I made there, if any. I received forty dollars under that arrange- 
ment. I had no interest in the patent, except, as I have just 
stated,, in the sales. I wrote a short pamphlet on it, if it may be 
so called, which was subsequently twice enlarged. With regard 
to letters, I can't recall the letters whieh have passed on the sub- 
ject. After the arrangement above spoken of was closed, I went 
to Europe, and there was a sort of tacit understanding that, if a 
grant was made to Drs. Morton and Jackson, I should be remu- 
nerated. I received from Morton four hundred and twenty-five 
dollars as a part of my expenses to Europe, and subsequently I 
gave him a receipt in full, without having received any more. 

2d. With whom had you this understanding/;, spoken of in the 
last answer ? 

Ans. With Morton. 

od. Whether, after your first connection with Dr. Morton, you 
had occupied one of his rooms in Tremont row ? 

Ans. I did, for a few months. 

4th. How long ? Up to what time ? 

Ans. I think from about the 1st of March, 1847, until the last 
of July. 

5th. Whether you wrote the article in the Boston Medical and 
Surgical Journal, of Dr. Smith's, in Wednesday's number, April 
28th, 1847, p. 260, and the article in the same publication of 
Wednesday, July 28th, 1847, p. 520 ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

6th. What was the name of the pamphlet you spoke of as writ- 
ten by you? 

Ans. I don't remember the name of the first. The last one, 
and perhaps all, was called " The Letheon, or Who is the Dis- 
coverer." 

7th. How many editions of this pamphlet were published ? 

Ans. I should say three editions, each being larger than the 
preceding. 

8th. Was one of the pamphlets written by you called ** The 
Voice," or " A Voice from Europe ?" Did you write any articles 
that were published in the Boston newspapers ? 

Ans. The pamphlet called " A Voice from Europe," was not 
written by me. I did write articles published in the Boston news- 
papers. 



445 

Dtb, Do you know anything of a pamphlet entitled " On the 
Ph^'siological effects of Sulpliuric Ether, and its superiority to 
Chloroform," and who wrote it ? 

Ans. I know nothing about it. I have aeen it, but had no con- 
nection with it- 

10th. Did you, during the time you were with Dr. Morton, see 
Mr. R. H. Ed^ly present in his rooms ? If aye, how often ? 

Ans. I do not recollect that I ever saw him there, but, if he 
called during the time I was there, it must have been very seldom, 
for I should have seen him and recollected it. 

11th. Did you know from Dr. Morton, or from Mr. Eddy, any- 
thing about a letter to the surgeons of the hospital, which Mr. R. 
H. Eddy was to write in the spring of 1847 ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of it now. 

12th. Did you know anything, in the spring of 1847, of a sum 
of money which Mr. R. H. Eddy demanded of Dr. Morton, and 
which Dr. Morton had some difficulty, and some delay about 
paying? 

Ans. I have gome recollection of an amount of money which 
Mr. Eddy claimed from Dr. Morton, for some reason. 

13th. Whether you recollect that this sum of money was two 
hundred dollars ? 

Ans. No, sir. I don't recollect the sum. 

14th. Will you state what Dr. Morton said about this sura of 
money which Mr. Eddy demanded ? 

Ans. I am unable to recall any conversation which I heard, or 
had with Dr. Morton, on the subject. 

15th. Do you remember that Mr, Eddy refused to sign his 
letter to the surgeons of the hospital, unless the sum he demanded 
was paid to him ? 

Ans. I am unable to recall anything relating to that matter 
whatever. 

IGtli. Do you remember that Dr. Morton said he could not get 
the letter of Mr. Eddy, unless he could raise and pay Mr. Eddy 
the money he demanded ? 

Ans. 1 have no recollectaon of such a conversation. 

17th. Whether you remember that Dr. Morton obtained and 
paid Mr. Eddy the sum of money he demanded, in the spring 

Ans. My impression is that that claim was adjusted. 

18th. If you cannot recall any conversation of Dr. Morton on 
this subject, can you state the substance of the claim of Mr, 
Eddy — what it was for — whether there was delay in settling it, 
and, if delay, how long? 

Ans. My impression now is that Mr. Eddv set up a claim for 
something under the patent, but what it was I cannot remember. 
I am not able to answer as to the length of the delay to settle it. 
I think there was some difference of opinion about it. 



446 

19th. Ey what means, or agency, or how did it happen that 
you came to Boston from New York, to give your testimony here? 
Whether Dr. Morton called on you in New York ? 

Ans. Dr. Morton wrote me to New York from Washington, 
asking me if I was willing to give my testimony. I had other 
business, however, which I came here for. I certainly should not 
have come here otherwise. 

20th. Did Dr. Morton call on you recently, on his way through 
New York to Washington, within a month, or thereabouts ? 

Ans. I never saw Dr. Morton in New York. 

21st. When you went to the laboratory of Dr. Jackson, as 
testified about in answer to 3d interrogatory, and asked about 
the ether matter, and about some pecuniary arrangemcBt, did Dr. 
Jackson state to you that the patent was not his, but that that 
belonged to Morton, and that his interest in the patent was teri- 
hundredths of the sales ? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson disclaimed in toto all connection with the 
thing, business matters, discovery, and everything else. He dis- 
claimed the whole to me. His claim was to the extent of ten 
per cent, on sales made in this country and abroad. That was 
the extent of his claim when I called upon him. 

22d. Whether he stated to you that the patent was improperly 
or wrongly obtained, and that he would blow it up ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

23d. What did Dr. Jackson say about his interest of ten-hun- 
dredths of the sales under the patent ? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson told me that ten per cent, on sales in America 
laad been conceded to him, and now, at this time, he demanded 
ten per cent, on foreign sales in addition, adding that, if this was 
not likewise conceded, he would blow the whole thing up. 

24th. As to the safety of inhaling ether ; whether yoti remem- 
ber that Dr. .Jackson spoke of reports that had been brought to 
him of the carelessness or ret^klessne&s of Dr. Morton in using it, 
or of injuries or accidents to people to whom Dr. Morton had 
administered it? 

Ans. I think Dr. Jackson stated to me, in substance, that 
Morton was a reckless man, that he was administering the com- 
pound in a dangerous manner, and that he would be likely to kill 
somebody with it. 

25th. Have you any memoranda of this interview ? How^ full, 
or otherwise ? 

Ans. I have a brief memoranda of it, 

26th. Where were these memoranda made ? 

Ans. In Dr. Morton's office. 

27th. When were they made ? 

Ans. I think in March or April, 1847, 



447 

28th. Why were they made ? 

Ans. The discovery had assumed a very important shape, and 
I supposed that everything relating to the matter might be of 
deep interest. 

29th. What did you do with these memoranda after they were 
made ? 

Ans. I made no account of them, nor kas any human eye, save 
my own, ever seen them until 1852. Neither did Dr. Morton, 
jior any other person, know of their existence. 

30th. To whom, if any person, have they hern shown, sin«e 
they were made ? 

Ans. They have been seen only by ray brother, H. A. Warren, 
and by R. H. Dana, jr., to whom I read certain extracts merely. 
No one has ever taken them out of my hands. 
31st. Is it your habit to make memoranda of conversations ? 
Ans. In some important cases it is. 

32d. Did you have these memoranda you have spoken of, with 
you, or before you, when you wrote the articles published in the 
Boston Medical and Surgical Journal ? 
Ans. No, I did not. 

33d. Where were these memoranda then ? 
Ans. I don't recollect exactly ; they were among my papers ; 
these facts were too fresh in my memory at that time to require 
any memoranda. 

34th. When did you put them among your papers, and when 
take them from your papers ? 

Ans. They were with my papers from the lime they were writ- 
ten until March, 1852, when I looked them over, having, in the 
mean time, almost forgotten that they were in existence. 

35th. Did you ever state the facts you have spoken of here 
and testified about, to Dr. Morton? 
Ans. Certainly ; probably often ? 

36th. Did Dr. Morton, or any one in his behalf, call on you 
to give your deposition, or to write a letter embodying what you 
knew of this matter, before the present time ? 

Ans. Yes; Governor Brown, of Mississippi, then a member of 
Congress, and, I think, a member of the Congressional Commit- 
tee on the subject of the ether controversy, addressed me a letter 
in March, 1852, asking me to state what I recollected of my first 
interview with Dr. Jackson on this subject. I replied to that 
letter ; I have not the reply here ; my papers are all in New 
York ; I sent the reply to him ; the substance of that reply I 
have stated in answer to the third direct interrogatory. 

37th. Where have these papers been while you have been 
absent in California ? 

Ans. They have been locked up in my trunk, in my unck''?s 
office, in Court street, in Boston, a part of the time, and the 



448 

remainder of the time I think they were in the hands of my 
brother, in Boston ; they were locked up, and I had the key. 

38th. Whether your testimony here is founded on the papers 
and memoranda you have spoken of, or whether you recollect 
what you have testified about independently of such papers ? 

Ans. I recollect the principal facts, and that recollection is 
strengthened and confirmed by my memoranda. 

39th. What did you do with the manuscript of the various 
articles you have written on the ether question — did you keep 
these — have you a bundle of ether papers, pamphlets, and arti- 
cles written by you, and memoranda ? 

Ans. I have kept the manuscripts, all of them, I believe, and 
have them now; they never have been out of my possession ; I 
have a bundle of papers and memoranda. 

40th. Were the memoranda spoken of by you in answer to the 
25th interrogatory, as shown to Mr. Dajia and others, kept with 
these papers, &c., last above spoken of? 

Ans. I do not recollect that I have shown any of the papers 
whatever relating to this naatter to any person, save the memo- 
randa before referred to. They were all kept together. 

41st. Before the communication to you spoken of as by Goy, 
Brown, in answer to 36th cross-interrogatory, requesting your 
account of an interview with Dr. Jackson, had Dr. Morton, or 
any one in his behalf, requested your deposition, or written state- 
ment ? 

Ans. No, sir. Dr. Morton had asked me if I was willing to 
reply to a letter from Gov. Brown. I answered that I was. That 
is the only request which has been made of me on that subject, 
that I now recollect. 

42d. When did Dr. Morton ask you this ? Where ? Had he 
made any request to you before this time for your deposition, or 
letter ? 

Ans. He had not made any such request before this time, to my 
recollection. He asked this of me in Washington, in March, I 
think, 1852. 

43d. Whether or not, in what you have written and published, 
you have labored to make it appear, and to make people believe, 
that Dr. Morton was the discoverer ? 

Ans. Most certainly. I believed it, and so labored to prove. 

44th. When and where did you first know Dr. C. T. Jackson? 

Ans. My first recollection of meeting Dr. Jackson was in Ban- 
gor, Maine, in 1836 or '7. 

45th. What was Dr. Jackson doing in Bangor? How long 
was he there ? What was your occupation there and then ? 

Ans. Dr. Jackson had been, or was then, engaged in making a 
geological survey of Maine, but was at this time giving a course of 
lectures on geology. I can't state how long he was there. I was 
in the mercantile business there. 



449 

46ith. How often did you see Dr. Jackson in Bangor ? Where 
did you live then ? At a hotel ? Where did Dr. Jackson stay ? 

Ans. I think I saw Dr. Jackson almost daily while he was there 
preparing for his lectures, and was often with him in his lecture- 
room. I saw him also frequently at our own honse. We were 
keeping house at that time, I think, in Harlow street. I do not 
recollect where Dr. Jackson lived. 

47th. In what mercantile business were you engaged in Bangor 
at the time spoken of? Had you much leisure, or were you en- 
gaged much in your business ? 

Ans. I was engaged in the grocery business, with my brother 
and another partner, and had a good deal of leisure, 

48th. Where was your place of business in Bangor ? What 
was the name of the firm? 

Ans. I can't recollect the name o^' the firm, but the partners 
were H. A. Warren, a Mr, Goodhue, and myself, I think the 
place where we did business was called West Market Square. 

49th. Who composed the family, as you have spoken of it 
as our housPy in Harlow street ? 

Ans. Henry Warren, H. A. Warren, and myself, with one or 
two sisters. 

50th. How often, before 134B, had you been in the laboratory 
of Dr. Jackson ? How often, if ever, since 1846 ? 

Ans. Before, occasionally, but how often, I am unable to say. 
Since that time, I think I have not been in it at all. 

51st. What correspondence have you had with Dr. Jackson ? 
Please state this at length. 

Ans. I had some correspondence with Dr. Jackson, I thin k i 
the winter ot 1836- '7, on the subject, I believe, of giving lectures 
in Bangor. In 1847, I received one or more letters irom him 
while I was in Washington. 

52d. What called forth these letters to you in 1847 ? Upon 
what subject were they ? 

Ans. Principally on the subject of Dr. Wells's claim to the then 
new discovery. I can't say what called forth the letter. I think 
it was no movement of mine, but that it was entirely on Dr. 
Jackson's part. 

53d. Was any other subject mentioned than Wells's experi- 
ments in these letters? How many letters were there? Were, 
they published? 

Ans. I think Dr. Jackson, in one of those letters, speaks of his 
claims to the discovery. I do not now recollect of but one letter. 
They were not published, but merely some brief extracts in one 
of my pamphlets. 

54th. Have you the letter of Dr. Jackson referred to? If aye, 
will you produce this ? 

Ans. I have it in New York, and cannot now produce it. 
29 



450 

y55ih. Will you send this to the magistrate, to be annexed to 
this depositioa? 

Ans. I, at present, see no objection whatever. 
56th. In this interview at Dr. Jackson's laboratory, spoken of 
by you, whether you remember that you stood in one corner and 
had your conversation ? 

Ans. I do not recollect. My impression is that we sat or 
stood near the doer. 

57. How long was this conversation in the laboratory ? Five, 
ten, or fifteen minutes ? 

Ans. From my present recollection, it continued at least half 
an hour, and probably longer. 

58th. Whether you remember that you stated to Dr. Jackson, 
when you went to his laboratory, that you suifered from weakness 
of eyes, and wanted some employment which would not try your 
eyes? 

Ans. It is highly probable that I did, as I was suffering under 
an attack of amarosis in one of my eyes, but my impression is, 
that the conversation with regard to my eyes was had at another 
time, since I recollect of applying to him for admission into his 
laboratory as a student of chemistry, when the subject of my 
weak eyes was brought up. 

5%th. Whether you remember that you asked Dr. Jackson if 
he could find something for you to do in his laboratory, at the 
interview spoken of in answer to third interrogatory ? 

Ans. I think, at this time, nothing was said about giving me 
employment in the laboratory. 

60th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson stated to you 
that chemistry was the worst thing in the world for weak eyes,. 
at this interview spoken of in answer to third interrogatory ? 

Ans. No, sir. I think he said very near those words, but, 
from my present recollection, it was at a previous interview. 

61st. Whether you remember that you asked Dr. Jackson if 
you could find employment as agent in disposing of patent licenses, 
at this interview spoken of in answer to third interrogatory ? 

Ans. I may have done so. 

62d. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson said he had 
nothing to do with selling rights, or licenses ? 

Ans. He certainly said that, or words to that effect, for he dis- 
claimed all participation not only in the patent, but in the dis- 
covery itself, further than as giving a hint. 

63d. Can you give the words of Dr. Jackson in his reply to 
you ? 

Ans. I am unable to state his precise words. 

b4th. Whether you remember that you asked Dr. Jacksoa 
*' who had it," and that Dr. Jackson said that Dr. Morton traded 
in licenses ? 



451 

Ans. Dr. Jackson referred me to Dr. Morton for information in 
regard to the whole subject. I do not recollect of his using the 
words inquired about. 

65th. Whether you remember asking Dr. Jackson where Dr. 
Morton's place was, and if he would employ you ? 

Ans. It is probable I asked where his place was, but have no 
recollection of asking if he would employ me. 

66th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson said you had 
better have nothing to do with it, for that he should blow up the 
whole business of speculating in licenses to use ether ? 

Ans. I can't recall any conversation on that subject : but my 
belief is that there was none of that import. 

67th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson said Morton 
had behaved very badly, and had disgraced the discovery, and 
that you said you would go and see him, and that you then went 
aw^ay ? 

Ans. I do not recollect that he said he had disgraced the dis- 
covery, but that he said in substance, that Dr. Morton would 
disgrace it, or kill somebody. Dr. Jackson expressed, at this 
time, some dissatisfaction wnth Dr. Morton. 

6Sth. Whether or not, you remember that all the conversation 
with Dr. Jackson was had with him standing near the door of his 
laboratory, he standing near you all the tifme you w^ere present ? 

Ans. My impression is that we both sat and stood during the 
conversation. 

69th. Whether you remember a draft of $75 from the West, 
payable to Dr. Jackson, and that Blaisdell came to Dr. Jackson, 
who said that he would have nothing to do with sales of patent 
licenses, and that you wrote to the man out West about his draft ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of the matter. 

70th. Will you please state your occupation in Boston, in the 
fail of 1846 ? 

Ans. I was engaged in the oil business, as a commission 
merchant, up to the time of my first interview with Jackson and 
Morton. 

71st. When did you go to Europe about the ether matter? 
How long were you there ? What did you do for Dr. Morton 
and his interests there ? 

Ans. 1 went the first of August, 1847. I was there about ten 
months, during which time I urged Mortoa's claims, both in Great 
Britain and on the continent, as earnestly as I was able. 

72d. Whether you stated that you were in England and on the 
continent, in Morton's behalf? 

Ans. I dare say. I have always stated that I went abroad on 
that subject, on Slorton's behalf. 

73d- Whether you remember receiving a letter from Dr. 
Morton, witJi a number of Littell's Li\in2: A^e, ami a French 



452 

Ans. I think I did receive them. I received various packages 
from Morton on that subject, while in Paris. 

74th. Can you state the number of the pamphlets you received, 
and will you produce the letters referred to as received from 
him ? Have you the letters ? 

Ans. I am unable to state the number of pamphlets, but I 
received several. The letter, or letters, are in New York, and 
I am unable, therefore, to produoe them. 

75th. Can you state what Dr. Morton wrote to you in the let- 
ters referred to ? 

Ans. I cannot. 

76th. Whether you remember that he wrote, "Do nothing 
without consultina; Dr. .Jacob Bigelow," then in England, or then 
going to England ? 

Ans. I think his letters contained nothing of the sort. He de- 
sired me to confer with Bigelow, as I now recollect. 

77th. For -^^'hat purpose, and to what end ? What did he 
write about this ? 

Ans. About Dr. Morton's interests generally, in relation to the 
discovery, I suppose. 

78th. Did Dr. Morton write that he sent any co}:)des of his 
French pamphlet, or any pamphlet, when Dr. Bigelow went to 
Europe ? 

Ans. I think he did. 

79th. Whether you received any pamphlets when Dr. Jacob 
Bigelow went to England ? How many ? Did you see Dr. 
Bigelow in Europe ? 

Ans. I believe I received none by him. I did not see him. 

80th. Did Dr. Morton write that he had sent ten thousand 
copies of Littell's Living Age to every minister of religion, to 
every learned society, &c.? 

Ans. I think Dr. Morton wrote me that he had sent ten thousand 
copies abroad. 

81st. Will you send the letter referred to to the magistrate, to 
be copied and annexed to this deposition ? 

Ans. I now see no objection. 

82d. Did you visit each member of the French Academy with 
copies of the French pamphlet of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I did not ; I only spoke to two members of the French 

Academy, Yelpeau and Arago, and I think no other. I saw 

Velpeau, I think, twice, and Arago the same number of times ; 

These con- 1 attended the sessions of the Academy quite often — from twelve 

^i^ed Dr. to fifteen times. 

moirs and ^'^^- The members of what French society did you visit with 
a fewVrag- copies of any of Dr. Morton's papers ? 

ments of 4ns. J gent Dr. Moi ton's pamphlets to the Academy of Medi- 
^th^°^%- ^^"^' ^^ ™y memory serves me, but to no other public bodies, I 
marks. 



453 

think. I met frequently with a society bearing the name, I think, 
of the Parisian Medical Society, composed of foreigners— Eng- 
lish and American, mostly — and gave the pamphlet to many 
others — to all I could find who wanted them. 

84th. Do you remember being present at a Parisian Medical 
Society, so called, composed of English and American dentists; 
and that you there stated that you w^ere there as a friend of sci- 
ence and truth, and not in Dr. Morton's employment ? 

Ans. I have no recollection that such a body exists in Paris, 
or that I ever stated words to that effect anywhere. 

85th. Do you remember being present with some society in 
Paris, where Dr. Brewster w^as present, and Dr. Willis Fisher, of 
New York, was present? 

Ans. I do ; it is the society I above referred to, but not com- 
posed of dentists. 

86th. Do you remember any such statement as a bore in 84th 
interrogatory asked about before this society? 

Ans. I do not. 

87th. Did you state, before such society, that you were in Dr. 
Morton's employment? 

Ans. I am unable to say ; but it was well known that I ap- 
peared there for the sole purpose of asserting and defending Mor- 
ton's exclusive claims. 

88th. Do you remember that, in England, you stated that Dr. 
Morton was an Englishman, from Worcestershire ? 

Ans. I certainly never said so. 

S9th. Whether you remember stating, after your return from 
Europe, that you entered into the ether matter with Dr. Morton, 
to make money out of it ? 

Ans. I dare say I did. 

90th. Whether you remember speaking in Bangor, (as if apolo- 
getically,) for acting for Dr. Morton, and that, to the statement 
to you that it was supposed you acted as a ''- quasi lawyer of Dr. 
Morton's," you stated there, '* You are mistaken, — Morton was 
in my employ ; — I put Morton up to claiming the discovery, and 
my object was to make money out of it, but it failed?" 

Ans. I have no recollection of stating any of it, neither is it 
possible that I could have so stated. I may have said, tliiit my 
object was to make money. 

91st. Whether you remember that you stated, in the fall of 
1846, or in 1847, that, whether Morton was the disco^^erer, or 
not, of etherization, you meant to prove him such ? 

Ans. I don't think I ever made such statement. 

92d. When you went to Washington, what was the sum sought 
for from Congress for Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. 1 don't recollect that any definite sum was demanded. 



454 

93d. WasBot twenty .thousand dollars the sum sought for^ or 
proposed to be paid for the use of ether in the army and navy ? 

Ans. I have no recollectioA of it. 

94th- With whom did you board, when in Washington ? 

Ans. About a dozen members of Congress. I don't rec'oiiect 
what was the name of the hotel. 

95th. Was Hon. H, Hamlin, one of the members? 

Ans. He was. 

96th. Whether you remember stating, at Washington, that Dr. 
Jackson was the discoverer of the use of ether for preventing pain 
in surgical cases ? 

Ans. I never stated anything of the kind. 

97th. Whether you remember conversing with Hon. H. Hamlin? 

Ans. My impreision is that I conversed with him frequently on 
that subject. 

98th. If Hon. H. Hamlin should state to you that you so stated 
to him, as is set forth in 96th interrogatory, would that affect 
your present memory as lo what you then said? 

Ans. It would not. I should say that he had entirely misun- 
derstood me. 

99th. Whether you remember any statement from Dr. Morton 
of Mr. Eddy's estimate of the value of his interest in tJie ether 
patent ? 

Ans. I do not. 

lOOtli. What written papers had you with Dr. Morton, setting* 
forth any of the various arrangements between you ? 

Ans. 1 think there was but one conti'act between us. The 
purport of it was that I was to have a certain per centage on 
sales effected by myself. 

101st. Whether in your writing in behalf of Dr. Morton, you 
have read and studied over the various publications and pamphlets 
concerning the ether discovery ? 

Ans. Only those published prior to August, 1847, with two 
or three exceptions. 

102d. Since your return from Europe, where have you lived, 
and what has been your occupation ? 

Ans. The first seven months I lived in Boston ; the next year, 
in California, and subsequently to my return, I passed the most 
of my time in Boston. My occupation has been of a general 
character. I have merely been looking after my private business 
affairs. 

103d. Whether, in your memory at this present time, you can 
separate impressions and facts that you hav^e learned from the 
publications and by conversations with Dr. Morton, from what 
you originally knew and otherwise learned ? 

Ans. I think I can. 



455 



Direct resumed by Mr. Dana. 

1st. Do you recollect a conversation in Washington with Hon. 
James Dixon ? When and what was it ? 

Ans. While in Washington, endeavoring to induce our Govern- 
ment to introduce this discovery into the army in Mexico, and WeUa'a 
after getting the matter referred to a select committee of the ^fT^'~~ 
House of Representatives, I learned with some vsurprise, that the by hoq. j; 
Hon. James Dixon, a member of Congress from Connecticut, and Dixon that 
townsman of Dr. Wells, had sent in a sort of informal protest to I^®P ^^ 
the committee's further proceedings, until a tionstituent of his, Dr. administer 
Wells, had furnished certain testimony in his favor. This was the nitrous 
early in January. I immediately called on Mr. Dixon, who^P<^® ^^ 
stated that Dr. Wells had requested his assistance, and had pro- ring'that he 
mised to furnish him certain evidence of his claims; but, having had aband- 
gone to Europe without procuring it, he did not think it would ^^^d it, as 
arrive at all, and, if not by a certain day, then near at hand, he ^*°serous, 
would aid me in my efforts : at the same time saying, as near as 
I can recollect, that, about two years before, he had heard that 
Dr. Wells was making some experiments with nitrous oxide gas, 
to prevent pain in extracting teeth ; that, having a severe tooth- 
ache, he called on him, proposing to take this gas, but that Dr. 
Wells informed him, that, after giving it to thirteen or fourteen 
patients, with only partial success, he had abandoned its use as 
dangerous, and dissuaded him from resorting to it. 

EDWARD WARREN, 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, \ 

Suffolk County, \ ^^' 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam of Edward Warren, taken before us upon the peti- 
tion of Dr. Wm. T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this Com- 
monwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Two Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law. 
Boston, January 14, 1853. 



456 



I, A. L. Peirson, of Salem, in the county of Essex, and com- 
monwealth of Massachusetts, of lawful age, physician, being first 
duly sworn, depose and say, in answer to interrogatories by R. 
H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. William T. G. Morton : 

1st. Are you a surgeon and physician, and how long have you 
been so ? What is your place of residence ? 

Ans. I have been a surgeon and physician since 1816. I 
reside in Salem. 

2d. Have you been, and for how long, a consulting surgeon o^ 
ingsSgeon*^^ Massachusetts General Hospital? 
of the Mas- Ans. I have been for about ten years, but am not now. 
sachiisetts 2d. Have you known, and how long. Dr. Charles T. Jackson ? 
ospi a . ^^g^ J have known him for twenty years considerably, espe- 

cially the latter part of the time. 
Relations 4th. When di(i your acquaintance with Dr, Morton begin ? 

parties. '^^ ^"''5- I^ October, 1846. 

5. Please state all your recollections and personal knowledge 
respecting the first introduction of ether. 

Ans. I first learned of it through the newspapers ; 1 think 
through a notice that a dentist in Boston had discovered an agent 
which prevented pain in the extraction of teeth — either an item 
or a puffing notice, I cannot tell which. On the 28th of October 
I attended a meeting of the American Academy of Arts and 
Sciences for the purpose of hearing an eulogy upon John Picker- 
ing. The meeting was held at the rooms of the society in Tre- 
mont street. On entering the rooms, I found Dr. John S. E. 
Jackson and Dr. Charles T. Jackson, and perhaps others, en- 
gaged in conversation upon the subject of this agent. As it was 
a matter in which I was exceedingly interested, I joined the 
group. I made my inquiries of Dr. Charles T. Jackson as to the 
nature of it, w^ho answered me readily, and communicated such 
information as he chose with regard to it. I understood that it 
was a compound in which ether w^as predominant. This induced 
me to select Dr. Jackson as my walking companion from the hall 
to the King's Chapel, where the eulogy was to be delivered, and 
back. [I was surprised to find that he did not consider it of very 
jgl^g^^P^^^^' great consequence.] He said he had made several discoveries, 
Jackson which benefited others, from which he had received no benefit ; 
considered and he had now discovered something w^hich he thought important 
the discov- ^q the dentists, to wit, the preparation or precipitation of gold in 
^at^ \m- the form of a sponge — spongy gold he called it — which the den- 
portance. tists used for filling teeth, and he meant that they should pay 
^^ ^^^ him for that discovery. He said, in substance, that he did not 
of theetter ^^^^^^ much of the ether, but he thought the other important. I 



457 

don't know but I put that too strong, in saying that he said he 
did not think much of it, but that he did not think so very much 
of it. [He appeared very desirous to communicate to me all I 
wanted to know on the subject, except as to the nature of the 
fluid.] He was very generous and kind in his communications. 

I afterwards waited upon Dr. Morton, with whom I had no 
acquaintance, in order to see him, if possible, extract a tooth 
without pain. No opportunity for the experiment occurred. I 
recollect now that Dr. Jackson told me, in the conversation which 
I have detailed, that common ether would not do, and that the 
best ether could be obtained in Philadelphia. He said it must be 
highly rectified. Dr. Morton, when I called upon him, received 
me very politely, and gave me any information which I desired, ex- 
cept that he did not tell me that it was nothing but common ether 
which was used. I knew at this time that the discovery was 
patented. Dr. Morton gave me permission to use it as much as 
I pleased, furnished me with a two-quart bottle of Letheon, as 
the ether was then called, a globe to contain the sponge saturated 
with the ether, and a suitable mouth-piece to respire it^ aj^id in- 
structed me generally about the mode of using it ; for all of which 
I paid him ten dollars. I occasionally applied to Dr. Morton for 
information on practical points, which he cheerfully gave. I af- 
terwards induced Dr. Fiske, one of our prominent dentists, to 
purchase of Dr. Morton the right to use it. 

(The part in brackets objected to. J. P. P.) 

6th. At the time of the interview with Dr. Jackson, was your 
interest in the subject connected with surgery ? 

Ans. Entirely so. I was greatly exeited on the subject of an 
agent which would take away pain in surgical operations. It 
oiten deprived me of sleep. It had been the great desideratum 
of my professional life^ and I saw that, if it turned out true, it 
would totally alter the whole current of my practice ; so that my 
visits to Boston on this subject were very frequent, costing me in 
a year more for passages to Boston thaji a season ticket. 

7th. Did you or not endeavor to get from Dr. Jackson all the 
information you could respecting it ? 

Ans. Yes, sir ; more as a chemist and savan than as a prac- 
tising physician. 

8th. How long were your conversations with him that day ? 

Ans. We talked four or five minutes ?n the hall, before the pro- 
cession. It was the constant subject of our conversation in going 
to the meeting-house, in the meeting-house before the services, 
and on our way back. ^ 

9th. In the conversations of that day, did he make any allusion gj^^ ^" 
to his having performed any experiment upon himself? Jakson to 

Ans. None that I remember. previous 

10th. Did he then make any allusion to his having made the ©r^^^^ov- 
discovery several years before ? ery. 



458 

Ans. No, sir, not that i remember. 

11th. Did he express any opinion as to its efficacy in surgical 
cases ? 
|Dr. Jackg ^ng. J i^^ve some vague notions that he did. I inquired of 
^tnesTun- ^^^' while in the church, if the same things could not be done 
der the im- with nitrous oxide gas, and whether this gas, as well as ether, 
preesion could not be used to prevent pain in continued surgical opera- 
* a* ^^com- *^^^s> to which he answered affirmatively. 

pound." 12th. Did he tell you what the composition of this agent was ? 

When you left him, did you suppose it to be a compound ? 

Ans. He told me no farther than that ether was usea in it, and 
that it must be very pure. He gave me reason to think that there 
were other important elements. I thought it was sulphate of 
morphia, or some narcotic. When I left him, 1 supposed it to 
be a compound. 

13th. Did he make any, and what comparison, as to their im- 
portance, between the discovery of this agent and his discovery 
about the gold ? 

Ans. He considered the spongy gold as more important to 
dentists than the ether. The conversation seemed to be confined 
to dentistry, and did not touch much upon surgery at that time. 
At this period in the history of the discovery of .ether, it ap- 
peared to be regarded principally as an affair of the dentists, and 
that was the reason, probably, that Dr. Jackson did not consider 
it of more importance. 

14th. Was its success in surgery then considered by you as 
problematical ? How was it treated by Dr. Jackson in that re- 
spect, if he alluded to it at all ? 

Ans. Somewhat so, though I inclined to the opinion that it 
would produce a great epoch in surgery. I was fearful that it 
would prove a failure. I cannot remember whether Dr. Jackson 
alluded to it in this respect, or not. 
Claim of ^^^^' ^^^ ^^ say anything, and what, at this time, about the 
the magne- ttiagnetic telegraph? [Objected to as immaterial. J. P. P.] 
tic tele- Ans. I cannot remember distinctly, but I think he claimed to 
S^^^' have suggested that discovery. [The answer objected to as the 
thought of the witness, and not a recollection of a fact.] 

16th. Had you yourself heard about Dr. Wells's experiment 
with nitrous oxide gas in Boston ? 

Ans. I do not remember the.t, at that time, I had heard of Dr. 
Wells's using nitrous exide gas for the same purpose as ether is 
now used. 

17th. W^ere you present at an experiment at the Massachusetts 
General Hospital ? Please state all that took place. 

Ans. I recollect being at the Hospital, to witness operations, 
when it was said that Dr. Morton's compound was to be tried. 
As there was unusual delay previous to the surgeons officiating, 
I learned that the cause of it was an objection to using a patent 



I 



459 

medicine, as violating the rules of the Medical Society. The 
surgeons had retired for consultation upon the matter, and Dr. 
Henry J. Bigelow soon after appeared, and stated to me that all 
objections had been removed by a letter from Dr. Morton. Dr. 
Morton appeared, prepared to administer his agent, and, I think, 
administered it. 

18th. Was Dr. C. T. Jackson present? What reason have 
you for remembering this ? What, if anything, impressed this, 
then or afterwards, upon your mind ? 

Ans. Dr. C. T. Jackson was not present, to my recollection; 
it did not occur to me at that time that it was surprising that 
Dr. Jackson was not there ; but afterwards, when a controversy 
arose between Morton and Jackson as to the discovery, I won- 
dered that I had seen no more of Dr. Jackson at the operations 
during the years 1846 and 1847. 

19th. In what you have said about Dr. Jackson's reply to your 
question about nitrous oxide gas and ether, did you and he refer 
to it as a matter of certainty, or of mere suggestion, or how 
otherwise ? 

Ans. As a matter of very great probability ; we, both of us, 
so considered it. 

20th. Whether or not, did Dr. Jackson's answer refer as well 
t® nitrous oxide gas as to ether ? 

Ans. It did — rather more so ; my remark referred rather to ni- 
trous oxide gas than to ether. 

Cross-interrogatories by A. Jackson, jr., esq., counsel for Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson. 

1st, Can you recall, so as to state what Dr. Jackson said at 
the hall, you having referred to this in your answer to the fifth 
direct interrogatory, where you said Dr. .Jackson stcited what be 
chose ? 

Ans. No, sir ; I could not possibly recall the words, nor can I 
recall the substance, the information has become so mixed with 
what I have subsequently heard. 

2d. Whether you can now recall the conversation with Dr. 
Jackson in the walk with him, so as to state whether he said to 
you that he told Morton that the ether must be given in a large 
volume, at once, suddenly, to produce its effect? 

Ans. 1 have no recollection that he told me any such thing. 

3d. Whether you remember speaking, in this walk with Dr. 
Jackson, about Wells anc! his experiments? 

Ans. Not to my recollection ; I presume I did not. 

4th. Whether, in this walk, Dp. Jackson said that the ether 
must be washed to rid it of its impurity ? 

Ans. He either told me so, or knowing <hat that was the way 



460 

to purify it, I took it for granted; I am inclined to think that he 
told me so. 

5th. Whether, in this walk, Dr. Jackson spoke earnestly of the 
Nothing safdy of inhaling ether ? 
the ^^etv ■^^^* -^ ^^^^ ^^ recollection of his saying anything about safe- 
of ether, ty ; I don't thijik the subject w^s broached between us. 

6th. Whether you remember that he spoke of Dr. Wm. F. 
Channing, and of his inhalation of ether ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of it. 

7th. Whether you remember that, in this walk, he spoke of 
putting in essential oils to gratify Dr. Morton in disguising the 
odor of the ether? 

Ans. Not to my remembrance. 

8th. Whether, in this walk, he spoke of the mode of preparing 
the ether ? 

Ans. No, sir. There were no remarks which necessarily led 
to it. 

9th. Whether he gave an account of how he became connected 
with the ether patent ? 

Ans. I have no recollection of his saying anything about the 
patent, 

10th. Whether or not, the great burden of the conversation 
with him, at the time of the walk, was, of the necessity of using: 
pure, highly rectified ether, and that it would not do to use the 
alcoholic ether of commerce ? 

Ans. No, sir; that was not a prominent remark. I rather 
thmk that was said while we were in the church, or walking home. 
In the first place, my object was to ascertain whether an anaes- 
thetic effect could be produced by inhalation ; and, second, how 
it could be done ; and, third, by what agents ; and therefore, it 
would, probably, be under this last head that I got any knowledge 
about the qualities of the ether. 

11th. Whether you can recall any account from Dr. Jackson, 
on that day, the 28th of October, of first, ^vashing the ether with 
lime water ; and second, of washing it afterwards with water? 

Ans. I have not the least recollection of either circumstance. 

12th. Did Dr. Jackson speak with you of the origin of this 
discovery of etherization, in the walk with him spoken of in your 
answer to the fifth direct interrogatory ? 

Ans. He did not at that time ; subsequently he did, but when, 
I have no idea. Subsequently he told me he injured his lungs 
in breathing chlorine gas, and respired ether as a palliative. 

13th. How long before the meeting referred to in your answer 
to the fifth direct, was it that you saw^ the notice or advertise- 
ment referred- to by you ? In what paper did you see the notice? 
Can you describe the advertisement further than you already 
have? 



461 

Ans. I can't remember those particulars, but have no doubt 
that it was but a short time before the meeting that I saw the 
notice. 

14th. Can you state, in any instance, the language Dr. Jackson 
used in the conversation with you on the 28th of October, or do 
you merely give your present impressions of what he said ? 

Ans. I can only recollect his language in two or three instances. 
One was that he did not think the ether of so much consequence, 
or words to that effect ; and another that he had given away sev- 
eral of his important discoveries, and that he did not mean that 
they, and I think he referred to the dentists, should have any 
more without paying for it. And in this connection he said 
something about a five hundred dollar fee, but whether he had 
charged it, or was going to charge it, in x connection with the 
ether, or some other subject, I cannot remember. 

15th. Whether y©ur recollection of this conversation is full and 
accurate, or how otherwise? 

Ans. It is imperfect. 

16th. Whether or not, you have been able to separate events, 
incidents and conversatiwis, as to order of time, or whether what 
you have learned since the early months after the announcement 
of etherization, may have become confused with what you first 
knew ? 

Ans. My study of the applicationof ether was purely practical, 
with reference to my own employment, principally, and it would 
be impossible for me to separate my knowledge of the circum- 
stances attending its discovery, assigning each fact its prop^ 
date. 

17th. Referring for a moment to a conversation with Dr. Jack- 
son in the church on the 28th of October, can you recall any fact 
in your position, or other special matter, which recalls any con- 
versation then, to your mind ? if aye, will you please state that 
and the conversation there? 

Ans. I can remember that we went into a pew on the left-hand 
side, eight or ten pews from the door of the church, and that I 
sat near the door of the pew and Dr. Jackson inside of me, I 
think. I presume we must have been among the last of the pro- 
cession, and, for my being so far removed from the pulpit, I felt 
at liberty to talk in a low tone. I can recall no other conversa- 
tion than I have stated. 

18th. Can you state what induced you to select Dr. Jackson as 
your companion in tne walk as testified to by you in answer to 
the fifth direct interrogatory ? 

Ans. As a gentleman for whose attainments I entertain a great 
respect, and I had been in the habit of asking him questions upon 
those subjects with which he was familiar, ever since my acquaint- 
ance with him. Finding him engaged with Dr. J. L. B. Jackson 
in talking about this new agent, I naturally applied to him.. 



462 

loth. What did Dr. Jackson say, if anything, as to not think- 
ing so very much about the ether as stated in this deposition ? 

Ans. I have nothing to add to what I have already stated. 

20th. As to the letter referred to in answer to the seventeenth 
direct interrogatory, can you recall what was said at the time 
about a letter of Dr. Morton's ? Whether there was delay while 
he was )^n-iting ihe letter, or some one was writing a letter for 
him? 

Ans, I knew nothing of a letter, until there being delay on the 
account which I have mentioned, young Dr. Bigelow said that 
there had been a letter from Morton, which removed all difficulties. 
I did not see that letter. Dr. Bigelow was, for a time absent 
from the room, and returned with that inibrmation. I knew 
nothing about whether Dr. Morton was writing the letter, or any 
one for him. 

21st. Did you know of Dr. Jackson's engagements in l846-'7, 
in occupation in surveys of the United States Government ? how 
much he was away irom Boston ? 

Ans. I can't reply as to dates. I knew generally that Dr. 
Jackson was frequently absent on business as a geologist. I 
believe he was United States Geologist. I once passed a day 
in his company in the western part of N^w York, while he was 
on his way to Lake Superior, but this was before the discovery 
of ether. 

22d. Did you know that, at the time of the operation referred 
to in answer to the 18th direct interrogatory. Dr. Jackson was 
necessarily absent from Boston, engaged in some mineral survey ? 

Ans. 1 did not, and do not, never having had any knowledge 
of Dr. Jackson's movements. 

23d. What did Dr. Morton say about the fluid used, when, as 
stated in answer to the fifth direct, you went to his dental rooms ? 

Ans. I went to Dr. Morton's to acquiiint myself with the mode 
of administering ether, and did not expect from him any commu- 
nication as to the nature of the fluid, as I knew it was patented. 

24th. Whether or not, in the diff"erent times that you saw Dr. 
Morton, his knowledge, or want of knowledge, came under your 
observation ? If aye, what was his knowledge of sulphuric ether, 
and the various kinds of ether, and of scientific and chemical 
matters ? 

Ans. They never were made matters of discussion between us, 
and I never had more than three or four interviews with Dr. Mor- 
ton on the subject. 

25th. Can you state about how long it is, that Dr. Jackson has 
been retired from medical and surgical practice ? 

Ans. I never heard of his being engaged in either of them, 
after his return from Europe, about twenty years ago. 



463 

26th. Have you yourself inhaled sulphuric ether in your own 
person ? if aye, often ? and how often ? 

Ans. I have often taken a few sniffs of it, but never inhaled it 
so as to produce any degree of insensibility. 

27th. Whether, according to your experience, or knowledge of 
the inhalation of ether, the account now shown to you, and to be 
annexed, contains a proper account of the effect produced by it 
on the senses and intellectual faculties ? 

(This statement is annexed, marked A. J. P. P.) 

Ans. The remarks of Mr. Gerdy j-efer to his own personal ex- 
perience. As I have never breathed ether, except as I have just 
mentioned, I cannot tell whether they are correctly stated or not. 
In noticing the effect of ether upon others, I confine myself mainly 
to the vital functions, circulation and respiration. Practically, 
there seems to me to be three stages in the administration of ether : 
1st, exhilaration ; 2d, insensibility ; 3d, stupor, which may be 
increased to fatality. 

28th. Is not the full etherized state generally one of agreeable 
dreams ? 

Ans. No, sir. I presume it is an absence of all ideas; I mean 
the full etherized state. 

29th. Is there any exhilaration where a large volume of ether 
is suddenly, at once, given to a patient ? 

Ans. Yes, sir, always, I presume. 

30th. Whether or not, it frequently happens, in dental and 
surgical operations on etherized patients, that, after the state ef 
total insensibility, there is a period of consciousness where there 
is no sense ef pain ? 

Ans. 1 believe that tactile sensation is often extinguished, while 
consciousness remains. 

31st. In a communication in the Boston Medical and Surgical 
Journal, of April 7th, 1847, by Dr. Keep, of Boston, is the fol- 
lowing: ^'In the last two hundred cases (nearly all highly intel- 
ligent persons, capable of accurate observation,) I have not known 
one who was not conscious of existence, time, and of the opera- 
tion which was being performed ; but, though the intellect was 
nearly or quite undisturbed, the sensibility to pain has been uni- 
formly greatly diminished, and generally entirely lost." Does 
your experience accord with this statement ? 

Ans. No, sir ; because we carry the administration of ether 
very much farther than the dentists are accustomed to, and seldom 
commence a considerable operation till insensibility is produced, 
by which I mean what I have described as the second stage of 
etherization. The two first patients which I etherized for impor- 
tant operations were on the 19th and 20th of November, 1846 ; 
one for an amputation of the arm, and one for an amputation of 



464 

the leg. I did not dare to carry the etherization as far as I have 
since been accustomed to. The first patient, an Irish girl, said 
she felt as though a reaping hook was thrust through her arm 
without pain. The second, a tanner, preserved about the same 
degree of consciousness and insensibility. These cases correspond 
with Dr. Keep's remarks. 

32d. Does it not very frequently and ordinarily happen that 
parturition, under the influence of etlier, takes place without any 
sense of pain, where perlect consciousness continues. 

Ans. Yes, if the effects of the anaesthetic are carried far enough. 
Twenty years ago, I saw a woman give birth to a child, in a state 
of drunkenness, without knowing it. 

33d. Whether or not, in your opinion, the purity of the sul- 
phuric ether from alcohol and acids, and the due admixture of at- 
mospheric air, are not among the most important particulars em- 
braced in the discovery of etherization. 

Ans. Important, but not the most important. 

34th. Whether or not, the ether of the shops, the ether of 
commerce, by reason of its impurities, is unfit for inhalation, 
where it is intended to produce a state of insensibility to pain. 

Ans. Not entirely unfit, but comparatively inefficient. 

35th. Was it anywhere taught^ — anywhere laid down in the 
books, — before September 30th, 1846, that inhalation of pure sul- 
phuric ether could be attended with safety to such an extent as to 
produce insensibiUty t© pain. 

Ans. The inhalation of ether for medical purposes has been for 
many years practised, principally for its soothing influence on 
the nerves. The late Dr. Treadwell, and many of the older phy- 
sicians, were in the habit of using it to relieve difficult breathing, 
^^2, especially of the dying. The safety of the respiration, and its 
soothing influence on the lungs, were stated in 1842, by a 
chemical writer — Pereira. I have used it myself, for the pur- 
poses above stated, more than twenty years ago. 

36th. Did you know, at or about the time of Dr. Fiske's pur- 
chase of a right to use ether of Dr. Morton, either from Dr. 
Fiske or Dr. Morton, what sum he paid to Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I know that nine hundred dollars was the sum demanded, 
and, I presume, paid. 

37th. Whether or not any person can be the author of a dis- 
covery in the inductive sciences without either originating any 
new idea or devising the means of establishing the truth of a 
conjecture, whether more or less probable, previously brought to 
view by another person ? 

Ans. He must either originate the knowledge of it, or show 
how that knowledge should be applied, or both. 

38th. Whether or not, you are familiar with the facts and early 
history of the publication of etherization, in October, 1846, and 
the winter and spring following ? 

Ans. Yes, sir, I was at the time familiar. 



465 
1. 

39th. Whether or not, you can specify any new idea con- 
nected with the discovery of etherization first originated by Dr. 
Morton, or any new experiment devised by him, by which that 
•discovery was established ? 

Ans. I never saw any facts shown by Dr. Morton under the 
administration of ether ; but 1 had a belief, founded on the state- 
ments which were then current, that Dr. Morton produced the 
first painless operation under the influence of ether by the ex- 
traction of a tooth without pain. 

40th. Whether or not the following letter is one from you ? and 
if aye, will you state in what, if in any, particular this letter re- 
calls any fact or incident in this deposition before inquired about 
to your recollection? 

[a copy of this letter is annexed, marked B. J. P. P.) 

Ans. I did write this letter, which fact was not in my mind 
when I gave the foregoing answers. On re-perusing it, it suggests 
nothing to add to my answers, except that my first use of it was 
on the J 4th day of November, 1846, 

Direct resumed by Mr, Dana. 

1st. Please refer to your answer to the thirtieth cross-interro- 
gatory. From the mere fact that a person was insensible to 
touch, and did not feel the chair he was sitting on, could you 
infer that he would be insensible to a capital surgical operation ? 

Ans. Yes ; because, as the skin is one of the most sensitive 
structures of the body, if the patient could not feel there, he pro- 
bably could not anywhere. I mean by that, if the patient does 
not feel an impression on the skin, he will not feel beneath the 
skin, although I should not think merely not feeling the chair he 
sat upon a sufficient evidence that the skin was devoid of sensi- 
bility. 

2d. Are there or not, drugs, liquors, gases, or vapors, be- 
sides ether, which produces, at times, and on certain persons, 
unconsciousness and insensibility to as great a degree as that de- 
scribed in the first cross-interrogatory ? 

Ans. Yes, indeed. Whatever produces a sufficient degree of 
intoxication will produce that effect. 



A. L. PEIRSON. 



A, 



M. Gerdy has v^ratched and noted his own experience when 
etherized, with much accuracy. His description of this experi- 
ment is as follows : 

I submitted myself to the inspiration of air charged with ether. 
The sensation which I experienced in the throat caused me at first 
to cough ; but, being resolved to resist this, I readily triumphed 
30 



466 

over so petty an obstacle. The prickling and the cough gradually- 
ceased. From this moment I experienced a sensation of numb- 
ness with heat, as if alcoholic and inebriating vapor were mount- 
ing to the brain. This numbness spread itself quickly. Com- 
mencing in the feet and toes, it extended to the limbs, and at the 
same time to the arms, after that, to the loins, &c. It increased 
rapidly at each inspiration. It was accompanied in the sensible 
organs by a^ feeling of agreeable heat, by a sensation of crawling, 
of trembling, or of vibration, similar to that which we experience 
on touching a vibrating body. 

Sight is not sensibly affected by this numbness, for I read some 
philosophical signs by a feeble light, at a moment when I w^as 
powerfully benumbed. Hearing was more altered ; it became 
less and less distinet, as the inebriety augmented, and became 
more and more clear and distinct as this disappeared. In truth, 
it was easy to believe that the noises were growing more obscure 
because they were becoming more distant, and that they afterwards 
became clearer, because they approached. Notwithstanding this, 
the more profound the numbness, the greater the resonance pro- 
duced by sound ; but this intensity did not render it more clear. 
I am well assured that the senses of smell, of taste, of tact pro- 
perly so called, w^ere not paralyzed by the general numbness which 
I experienced, but I felt that the eyelids were heavy, a desire for 
sleep, a*nd above all, a wish to abandon myself to the delights 
with which I was infatuated. However, either because these 
phenomena had acquired the g^-eatest degree of their development, 
or because I wished to observe myself until the last moment, I 
would not yield to the seductions which enticed me, and I did 
not fail asleep. I continued to study myself, and, as 1 examined 
my sensations, I directed my attention to my intellectual functions. 
I remarked then, that, with the exception of the vibratory sensa- 
tion of numbness, which rendered my general tactile sensation 
and pain obtuse ; with the exception of the ringing in the ear, 
which prevented my distinguishing perfectly what I heard, my 
perceptions and thoughts were very clear, and my intelligence 
perfectly free. My attention was also very active, my will firm, 
so firm that I willed to walk, and I walked, that I might observe 
the state of my locomotive powers. I then discovered that my 
muscles were a little less sure and less precise in their movements, 
somewhat similar to those of a person intoxicated, or who is, at 
least, rendered giddy by alcoholic drink. With the exception of 
the pronunciation, which was embarrassed and slow, the other 
functions of the animal economy did not seem tome to be sensibly- 
altered. My pulse, examined at the moment when I was most 
benumbed, presented no marked change from a healthy standard. 

The same experiment, repeated upon six or eight persons, men 
and women, has given analogous results, although not absolutely 



467 

simiiar. Some lost, as in sleep, their consciousness, while others 
were gay and had obscurity of vision, vrhich last, however, was 
not present in the majority of cases. 

From the fact that an individual has submitted to a long and 
painful operation for the extraction of polypus of the nose, with- 
out experiencing the least fatigue, although he was net asleep, is 
it not }>ermitted us to hope, that it will be the same in many sim- 
ilar cases? Does it not permit us to establish as a principle, that 
it is not indispensable to push the etherization until sleep has been 
brought on ? Are we not forced to think that the etherization, 
when carried beyond sleep, even to general coldness or to feeble- 
ness of pulse, is dangerous ? In fine^ is it not permitted us to 
hope that it will frequently be sufficient simply to produce a gen- 
eral numbness, even without sleep, in order to geatly diminish the 
pain of operations and render them very supportable? It is on 
this account that I have not endeavored to produce profound sleep 
in the cases which I have related, but have hastened to operate. 

The foregoing is the statement referred to in the 27th cross-in- 
terrogatory, as annexed and marked A. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 



B. 

Salem, April 28, 18 4d. 

Dear Sir : My first knowledge of the ansesthetic effect of 
ether was derived from a conversation with Charles T. Jackson, precediDV*^ 
at a meeting of the American Academy at their room^ on the day exammat'n 
of Judge White's eulogy on Mr. Pickering, sometime in October, ^^^^ ^^?5 
1846. We walkati together in the procession and I was very conversa^'^ 
eager to learn the practical application of this new agent. Dr. tion. 
Jackson was free in his communication, spoke of the plan of 
patenting with dislike — cautioned me with great care, against 
using impure ether, stating that perfectly pmre sulphuric ether 
was mainly the agent employed — compared its effect with that 
of nitrous oxide gas, which he averred might be used for the 
same object, and satisfied me so well that the new discovery was 
worth trying, that I took tf>e first opportunity of an important 
operation to try its effects. This was the extirpation of a fatty 
tumor, and occurred on the 14th November, 1846, in the pres- 
ence of many of the Ikculty of the neighborhood. 

I send the foregoing statement in consequence of your request 
made to my son, and remain. 

Very respeetfullv, your obedient servant, 

A. L. PEIRSON. 

Mr. Henry C. Loud. 



468 

The foregoing is the copy of the letter referred to in the ques- 
tion and answer — fortieth cross-interrogatory, as annexed and 
marked B. 

J. P. PUTNAM. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, ) 

Suffolk. ] ^^' 

We hereby certify, that the foregoing is a true copy of the 
deposition in perpetuam. of A. L. Peirson, taken before us upon 
the petition of Wm. T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this 
Commonwealth. 

GEO. T. CURTIS, 
J. P. PUTNAM, 
Two Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law, 
Boston, January 14, 1853. 



LETTER FROM MR. POORE. 



To the Hon. Mr. J. jp. Walker-, Chairmcm of the Select Coin- 

mittee : 

Sir : The ether question having been made the topic of con- interest- 
versation, a few evenings since, at a dinner party given by the ing account 
British minister, some remarks of mine so interested Gen. Shields, [^^es^of^the 
that he requested me to communicate them to you, as Chairman French 
of the Committee on the Discovery. At that time, I would state. Academy 
I had not seen either Dr. Morton, Dr. Jackson, the agents of the ofSciences. 
Wells' heirs, or the attorneys of either party, for a year, and 
what I now testify is elicited by a desire to combat persecution 
and fraud. 

At the commencement of the year 1847, I resided in Paris, 
where I had been engaged for some years as *' Historical Agent 
of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts," and correspondent of 
the " Boston Atlas." The latter occupation led me to pay espe- 
cial attention to every thing American, and to watch the action 
of the Academy of Sciences on all home questions. I have re- 
freshed my recollections by reference to the files of the '' Boston 
Atlas," and the " Contes Rendus," or printed journals of the 
Academy of Sciences. 

The ether question first came up before that body on the 18th 
of January, 1847, when M. Elie de Beaumont read the contents 
of a sealed package which he had deposited on the Secretary's 
table on the 28th of December, 1846. This contained two letters 
from Dr. Jackson, one dated Boston, Nov. 13 — the other Boston, 
Dec. 1, 1848, in which he claimed to have remarked the proper- Why did he 
ties of ether five or six years previous, and then said : " I have l^eep silent 
latterly turned this discovery to use by inducing a dentist of this ^^ ^^qq'q^, 
city to administer the vapor of ether to persons whose teeth he Warren's 
was going to extract. It was observed that no unpleasant con- statement 
sequences attended the administration of ether, and I then advised ^' ^^^' 
this dentist to go to the General Hospital of Massachusetts," &c. 

No sooner had these letters been read, than Dr. Velpeau, an 
eminent surgeon, rose and expressed his surprise that M. De Beau- 
mont should thus profess to divulge a secret. It was no secret. 
A letter from Dr. Warren, which he had received a month pre- 
vious, disclosed the whole matter, and in the middle of Decem- 
ber, (before Dr. Jackson's letters were deposited on the table,) 
Dr. Willis Fisher, of Boston, then studying in Paris, had proposed 
to administer ether to patients at the hospital of La Charite. 



470 

Meanwhile Dr. Morton's claims were unknown, but some 
American papers were received, in which a Dr. Marcj claimed 
the discovery for a Dr. Horace Wells. This gentleman was in 
Paris, purchasing cheap pictures from the students who copy at 
the Louvre, and, if I mistake not, stuffed birds for an exhibition. 
I met him several times, soon after his arrival, but never heard 
him allude to the discovery, much less claim it. 

A Mr. Ducros also claimed, with much pertinacity, to have dis • 
covered the properties of ether as a pain-annihilator, in 1842; 
and, towards the last of January, Dr. Morton's claims were set 
forth in one of the newspapers — " La Presse,^^ I think. The 
claims of Mr. Wells were sustained by Dr. Brewster, an Ameri- 
can dentist of warm impulse, who claimed to have '*' drawn him 
out," and were endorsed by an English medical debating club, of 
which Dr. B. was a patron. The editor of Galignani's Messen- 
ger, Mr. Merle, (a personal friend of Dr. Brewster,) published 
Mr. Wells's letters. 

Dr. Velpeau, at a sitting of the Academy, wished that "these 
questions of priority could be set one side — they did not appear 
to have any fo^mdation. To announce that one has stupified, or 
put to sleep, some dogs or hens, is no information at all, because 
the action of ether has been known for fifteen, tw^enty, thirty 
years or more. Medical dictionaites, treatises on legal medicine — 
especially those of M. Orfila, and the Toxicology of this last- 
named author, in particular — indicate it formally. What is new, 
is the proposition to render patients, upon whom operations are to 
be performed, insensible to pain by means of the inspiration of 
ether. No person, to my knowledge, had made this proposition 
before M. Jackson, and no jierson, before the dentist Morton, had 
applied these means to suffering man." 

This was the first mention of Dr. Morton's name in the Acad- 
emy, and Dr. Velpeau had only seen Dr. Warren's letter. At the 
next gession, M. Magendie, in alluding to the discovery, speaks of 
it as " announced by an American dentist," without any allusion 
to Dr. Jackson. 

This impromptu recognition of Dr. Morton, as the one who 
first rendered the qualities of ether of practical use, brought over 
a volley of missives from Dr. Jackson and his attorneys. A 
common sewer of abuse was poured forth upon Dr. Morton, who 
was denounced as having committed every crime, except murder ; 
and, when his pamphlet arrived, most Americans w^ere prejudiced 
against him. I have a letter from Mr. Walsh, then United States 
consul, in which he declines considering Dr. Morton's claims; and 
a friend of Dr. Jackson's made personal application to me, to 
send nothing for publication in the Boston Atlas which would 
even recognise Dr. Morton, whom he denounced as an illiterate 
ouack, of infamous character. 



471 

Meanwhile Mr. Wells did not appear before the Academy, the 
recognised scientific tribunal, and his statements were very vague. 
He aTOwed his preferences for nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, to 
ether, and stated that the insensibility to pain was the res^ult of 
mere intoxication. This Mr. Merle alluded to, in his report of 
the proceedings of the Academy, of February 15, in Galignanfs 
Messenger, embodying an account of an operation on the eye of 
an English groom, by Dr. Laugier, who stated that the patient, 
having taken ether, was in a state of wild intoxication, and gave 
unequivocal signs of tRe sensation of pain. ''This fact," adds 
Mr. Merle, " is at variance with the opinion of Dr. Wells, who 
supposes that men, in a state of intoxication, are almost insensi- 
ble to pain from the infliction of wounds." Dr. Wells made no 
reply ; he left for the United States towards the last of February, 
and sailed from Liverpool, in the Hibernia, for Boston, on the 4th 
of March. 

On the 8th of March, 1847, his memoir was read before the TMs num- 
Academy. Among other statements, he asserted that, " until jn^diJeJent 
the month of February, 1845, 1 extracted teeth from twenty-five statemeats 
patients, without giving them any pain — invariably using nitrous 
oxide, as more agreeable to inhale than ether." 

The secretary, on reading this statement, said that it would 
not be examined by the committee until substantiated by proofs. 
This remark was in the printed report, and was sent to Dr. Wells, 
but I have never heard that the proof was sent. Indeed, it would 
have been difficult to procure. 

On the 22d of March, another communication from Dr. Jack- 
son w^as read before the Academy, in which he ridicules the pre- 
tensions of Dr. Wells, and denounces him savagely. 

Another parcel of documents from Dr. Jackson were read be- 
fore the Academy on the 5th of May, and added to the obloquy 
cast upon Dr. Morton. 

At length, on the 17th of May, documents arrived from Dr. 
Morton, whose claim was not first before the Academy, where 
Dr. Jackson had, for months, had opportunities of forestalling Seo Ham- 
public opinion. From that time the statements of Drs. Morton den & Co'a 
and .Jackson were regularly received, although in April, 1848, ^®**^'' P' ®' 
we find in the report a complaint by the secretary, that Dr. Mor- 
ton's documents miscarried on their way. 

You w^ill see, sir, by the above facts, that Dr. Wells did not 
go to Paris to assert any discovery — that he did not appear be- 
fore the Academy of Sciences whilst he was in Paris — that his 
statements varied — that he was cited to produce proof of his as- 
sertions, and never produced it. 

You will also see, sir, that Dr. Jackson completely forestalled 
Dr. Morton before the Academy, and had an opportunity, through 
his friend Elie de Beaumont, to win the confidence of the Aca- 



472 

demicians, whilst he and his friends did all in their power to de- 
fame and to degrade Dr. Morton. It was a great triumph for 
the latter, after all this, to receive the gold medal of the Acade- 
my, for he had to contend against prejudged public opinion. 

I might, sir, state facts which have come to my knowledge 
concerning publications made in scurrilous American papers by 
Dr. Jackson's emissaries against Dr. Morton — a line of conduct 
which can but enlist in Dr. Morton's behalf the sympathy of 
every gentleman. But my object was to show how the question 
was first presented to the French Academy and public, and I will 
go no further. 

I have sent a copy of this t© Dr. Morton, and can substanti- 
ate, if necessary, every statement which it contains. 
Respectfully, 

BEN : PERLEY POORE. 

Georgetown, D. C, January 20, 1858. 

P. S. Since the above was written, I see that the Honorable 
attorney of Mrs. Wells has presented Dr. Jackson's petition in 
the Senate, which confirms the report of a " coalition" between 
them to defeat Dr. Morton. This is curious, taken in connexion 
with with Dr. J.'s letter read before the Academy, March 22,. 
1847, and the following paragraphs, which I copy from an origi- 
nal letter, written by Dr. J. to a friend in Paris : — 

"Boston, March 29, 1847. 

H. Weils, of Hartford, a miserable advertising quack, formerly 
a partner of Morton's, has lately been to Paris, and has entered 
a reclaimer for the discovery of inhalation of ether, on the pre- 
tence that he has used exhilerating gas for the intoxication of 
his patients from whom he extracted teeth. He claims my dis- 
covery as similar in principle, and the rascal pretends to have 
suggested to me the idea of administering ether vapor. That is 
an outrageous falsehood, and we can prove him a liar from his 
own words. See his letters published in the Hartford Courant, 
Journal of Commerce, Herald, &c. 

Morton has a letter which Wells wrote after the patent had 
been applied for, stating his disbelief in the effects of ether. I have 
not read the letter, but Dr. Gould has, and has told me its contents. 

Two years ago Wells endeavored to extract teeth from persons 
to whom he had given the exhilerating gas. (protoxide nitrogen) 
but he failed, and said it was because people laughed so that the 
patients would not behave properly. He was laughed at for his 
pretensions and left Boston. No one ever believed in his story, 
and I never heard that any one ever attempted to repeat the ex- 
periment. I asked Morton to try it, but he said *'It would not 
succeed. Wells could never make it go." 

Do set this matter right in Paris, so far as you can, and oblige. 

Your friend, 

C. T. JACKSON." 



DEBATE IN SENATE. 



DEBATE IN THE UNITED STATES SENATE, SATUR- 

DAY, AUGUST 28, 1852, ON THE ANESTHETIC 

PROPERTIES OF SULPHURIC ETHER. 

EEOM THE APPENDIX TO THE CONGRESSIONAL GLOBE. 

The Senate having under consideration the bill making appro- 
priations for the support of the Army for the year endmg June 
30th, 1853— 

Mr. BORLAND, from the Committee on Military Affairs, sub- 
mitted the following amendment, to come in after the appropria- 
tion for the medical and hospital department of the Army : 

" To enable the President of the United States to procure the 
surrender of the patent issued to William T. G. Morton, on the 
12th day of November, 1846, for his discovery of the anaesthetic 
properties of sulphuric ether, $100,000." 

Mr. BORLAND. Mr. President, if the Senate will give me 
their attention for a few moments, I think I can put this matter on 
its true merits. The proposition is to appropriate $100,000 to 
enable the President of the United States to purchase from a 
patentee his patent, or the privilege of using property to which 
he holds exclusive right under his patent. 

The first inquiry that we make is : Is that which we propose to 
purchase valuable ? — and, if it is, what is its value ? I will not 
undertake to go into a detail of facts, or any argument to show 
the value of the discovery of the application of sulphuric ether 
as an anaesthetic agent. It is a subject w^hich has been before the 
public so long, that I apprehend every Senator is familliar with 
its history, and the character of the discovery. I state what I 
apprehend no one will controvert — I state as a member of the 
medical profession, representing, in that respect, I think truly, the 
universal sentiment of the profession throughout the world — that 
as a discovery beneficial to the human race, if it be second to any 
which has ever been given to the world, it is second to vaccination 
alone. I know that the universal sentiment of the medical pro- 
fessioi, so far as that sentiment has been expressed, is, that it is 
second to vaccination. 



474 

Then, sir, for the estimation in which it is held by the officers 
of our Government, who have availed themselves of its use in the 
public service, I have before me letters from the Secretary of 
War, from the Secretary of the Treasury, from the Secretary of 
the Navy, from the head of the Medical Department of the Navy, 
and from the head of the Medical Department of the Army — ail 
concurring in assigning to this discovery, as used in the public 
service, the very highest value ; and expressing the wish that the 
Gavernment might, by proper means, avail itself of the right to 
use it in the public service. 1 will not read these letters; it 
would occupy too much time of the Senate to do so ; but if any 
Senator should desire their reading, they can be read. All assume 
that it is of the very highest value, both to the Army and Navy ; 
that it has been availed of for years past ; and that incalculable 
benefits have resulted to the public, in saving life and allaying 
human suffering, greater than has ever been derived from any one 
source. It is a weli-knowTi fact, that, in the Army and Navy, 
in the performance of all important surgical operations, this agent 
is now very rarely, if ever dispensed with. And not only so, in 
the Army and Navy — not only is it used in saving life and suffer- 
ing on the part of our soldiers and our sailors, but throughout 
the private practice of our country, the most eminent surgeons 
and physicians resort to it now habitually, and declare that it has 
become one of the most important and valuable agents which 
they have in the profession. If there were time, I could go on 
for hours in giving the particulars, giving the modus operandi j 
giving the cases by name and by number, till they would count 
thousands upon thousands; but there i*s no time at this period of 
the session for that. 

The next point I would present is, how far it is recommended to 
our consideration ? The Select Committee of the House of Rep- 
resentatives, to whom this matter was referred — although, as the 
Senator from Connecticut suggests, they did not formally make 
their report, yet it was only because no opportunity was 
afforded for them to do so — have prepared a report — it is here 
before me — a most elaborate, learned, and conclusive repoj't as 
to the incalculable value of this agent, and the propriety, in the 
opinion of that committee, of its being availed of by the Gov- 
ernment. 

Sir, it may be asked if this be so valuable — if this individual 
has a patent for it, why doe» he not avail himself of the use of the 
patent, and prevent the use of sulphuric ether as an anaesthetic 
agent without recompense to him ? I need hardly remind the 
Senate of the fact, that it is one of those cases in which he can- 
not enforce his legal rights. How can he, sir ? Why, this 
agent is used in every State and county in this Union ; and it may 
be and perhaps is used in almost every family where physicians 
practice. He has no practical remedy for the violation of his 



475 

patent. Can he go to the bedside of the sick and suffering 
patient, who is undergoing an operation under the influence of 
this assent, and lay an injunction upon its use on such an oc- 
casion7 Certainly not. It is one of those cases which must 
strike the mind of every man that his patent, so far as the legal 
remedy extends, is worthless to him, although he has the legal 
right, for he holds the patent from the United States to its exclu- 
sive use for a certain term of years. 

The next question is, Is the individual who holds the patent 
lawfully entitled, if any one, to be paid for the use of this agent ? 
I say, he is. I have before me here a copy of his patent, and of 
the record in our Patent Office. The official acts of our officers 
have recognized and established, as our laws require, the identity 
of this individual as the lawful owner. It has been stated, I 
know, and may be repealed, that there is an adverse claimant ; 
that there is another individual who claims to be the discoverer, 
and who has a title to at least a portion of the compensation 
which we propose to pay. But to meet that I have to show that 
if that individual ever had any right to be considered the discov- 
erer, or any title to compensation, it has been relinquished for a 
consideration in favor of Dr. Morton ; for here I have from the 
Patent Office an official announcement to that effect, which is 
signed by Dr. Jackson, the only individual that I know of who 
sets up tin adverse claim to this discovery. But there is evidence 
before us from the veiy highest medical men in the country, and 
from the very highest medical officers of the army and navy, ail 
recognizing Dr. Moiton as the discoverer of this invaluable agent. 
But even if that were not so, the only other individual who sets 
up a claim to it has already, in the most solemn form, relinquished 
it forever, and assigned over to Dr. Morton all right or claim 
which he (Dr. Jackson) ever did have or could have. So that 
the point is settled that Dr. Morton stands before us as the 
patentee lawfully entitled to this discovery as the original dis- 
coverer. 

In the next place, lest it might occur to the minds of some that 
purchasing the right from a patentee to use a valuable discovery 
is a new thing in our Government, I beg leave to call attention to 
the records, which show that it is no new practice, but for years 
and years has been repeated over and over again. I will cite a 
few cases. We paid for the right to make anchors of a certain 
form for the navy, SI ,500; for the use of circular bullet moulds, 
$5,000 ; for the use of gas in vapor baths, $5,000 ; for elevating 
and pointing heavy cannon, $20,000 ; for the right to use patent 
anti-attrition metal, $20,000. We paid to the heirs of Robert 
Fulton, for benefits conferred by his improvements in steam navi- 
gation, $76,300. We paid for Mix's manger stopper, used in the 
cavalry service, $3,000. We paid to Dr. Locke, for the use of 
his magnetic clock, $10,000. We paid to McCulloch & Booth, 



476 

for the right to use the improved method of refining our argen- 
tiferous gold bullion, $25,000 ; — thus making an aggregate of 
$165,000 paid in these cases. But, in addition to these, there 
have been numerous instances in which patent rights, or the privi- 
lege of using in the service of the government patented articles, have 
been purchased by the departments, some of which instances I 
find cited in connection with the report of the Select Committee 
of the House of Representatives, for which were paid $178,032 ; 
making an aggregate of $343,000 paid by the United States for 
patents and the use of patented articles. 

Since I have been a member of the Senate, when meritorious 
individuals have come before us, who had made important discov- 
eries, we have aided them to test their discoveries by appropria- 
tions, amounting in the whole to $120,000. 

I mention these facts to show that precedents are all in favor 
of such use of the public money to enable the government to avail 
itself of important discoveries. 

I will not detain the Senate by saying more on this subject. I 
will briefly sum up. This discovery is a most valuable one to the 
human family at large. The two branches of our public service^ 
the army and navy, have availed themselves extensively of it. It 
is one of the most valuable remedial agents that the world has 
ever known. It is in constant and growing use. This idea, which 
we are thus using, not only prolongs human life and protects our 
soldiers and our sailors, and all in our public service from immense 
suffering, but it is saving, in that mode of treating diseases, thou- 
sands upon thousands of dollars every year and every month. This 
individual cannot enforce his legal rights against anybody, owing 
to the very nature of the case. We are making use of his pro- 
perty to our great benefit, and he is receiving no compensation 
whatever for it. Then the papers before me, as I have read them, 
show that he is the individual who is entitled to compensation, if 
any one, for the use of this property. We find that the practice 
of the government — a very enlightened and useful practice, in my 
opinion — has been in favor of appropriations of this sort. Then, 
sir, I ask if this is not a proper occasion for the continuance of this 
practice ? When was there ever before us a more meritorious 
case ? The medical profession throughout the country sustain me 
in the assertion that this is the most valuable remedial agent that 
ever has been known. How can we, then, injustice to ourselves, 
in common justice to the individual who has furnished us this val- 
uable, or rather invaluable remedy, refuse to pay him for it? 

Mr. SMITH. That a discovery has beea made, I admit ; and 
that discovery is, that the effect of ether, taken into the lungs, is 
to produce insensibility in the human system. I agree with the 
honorable gentleman from Arkansas, that this substance, when 
taken into the lungs, will produce insensibility in the subject un- 



477 

der the operation of the knife. I agree with him, that it is a great 
boon to humanity ; but I deny that it is a patentable discovery. 
And I pledge whatever reputation I may have, that if the Senate 
will allow me, at the next session of Congress, an opportunity to 
be heard on this subject, I will make out a case for the family of 
Dr. Horace Wells, deceased. If the subject shall then be referred 
to the judgment of a committee of this body, I will be prepared to 
make out a case worthy the most grave and serious consideration. 

Mr. GWIN. Mr. President, as I formerly belonged to tlhc medi- 
cal profession, I wish to indorse everything that has been sai(! by 
my friend from Arkansas in regard to this valuable agent. I con- 
fess that I came to the examination of this question with extreme 
reluctance. I had been out of the profession for many years, and 
I attempted in every way I possibly could to throw it off ; but, 
having been requested by those whom I could not disoblige, to 
look into it, I must acknowledge that this is one of the most im- 
portant discoveries that has ever been made in the medical pro- 
fession ; and this gentleman being the patentee, I could look upon 
it in no other light than that, as we have availed ourselves of his 
property — for his patent is his property — we should in equity and 
justice recompense him for it. I came to this conclusion with re- 
luctance, for I was very much disposed, without examination, to 
go against the claim. But having examined it, I could do nothing 
less than to add my testimony to that of the Senator from Arkan- 
sas, both of us havmg been in the medical profession. 

Mr. SHIELDS. I beg to state how the matter came before 
the Committee on Military Affairs. The subject was investi- 
gated by a Select Committee of the House of Representatives, 
and I was informed that the claims which the honorable Senator 
from Connecticut says he represents, vv^ere examined before that 
committee, and that committee has reported. One of my col- 
leagues in the House, [Mr. Bissell,] a physician by profession — 
and permit me to say, not only an able physician, but as veracious 
a gentleman as any in Congress — assured me that after a full and 
fair inquiry, instituted by him and the residue of the committee, 
of which the late lamented Mr. Rantoul, who was a highly-edu- 
cated and well-informed man, was a member, and after all the 
claimants had been heard, and after an examination of the evi- 
dence, the committee had come to the unanimous conclusion that 
Dr. Morton was the discoverer of this great remedial agent. It 
is a subject which I did not very well understand myself. The 
Committee on Military Affairs, therefore, committed it to the 
honorable Senator from Arkansas, who is a physiciaji by profes- 
sion, and who understands the whole subject. A professional 
gentleman of the other House, eminent in his profession, and a 
highly-educated man — a man of veracity and honor — assured me 



478 

that the committee of that body had thus determined, after a full 
and fair inquiry. 

It has been stated that this is one of the greatest discoveries of 
modern times. I believe it is. Of that, however, I only know 
this, that if this remedial agent had been known when the honor- 
able Senator from Connecticut says he understood it was, it was 
unpardonable that its use was not applied to the American army 
in the late war with Mexico. It was criminal that it was not ap- 
plied, if it was known, and it w^as wicked in that gentleman to 
withhold his information from the country on such an occasion as 
that ; for, sir, I believe it would have saved thousands and thou- 
sands of lives. 

Mr. CLEMENS. No doubt of it. 

Mr. SHIELDS. Any man who witnessed the scenes which 
some of us were there called upon to witness, well knows that 
such an agent would have saved thousands of lives. Sir, thou- 
sands of our bravest and best men fell under the pains and afflic- 
tions that followed surgical operations. I have seen so much of 
that, that I was rejoiced to have an opportunity, when I found 
there was such an agent discovered, to give my support in any 
w^ay ; and although I was not acquainted ^^ith the subject, I was 
happy to have it in my power to turn it over to the honorable 
Senator from Arkansas, who was acquainted with it. I venture 
to say that there is not a professional man in America or in Eu- 
rope who will not consider this the most beneficial discovery since 
the discovery of vaocination. 

I cannot tell whether Dr. Morton is the discoverer or not ; I 
know that those who have examined the subject thoroughly say 
that he is the discoverer. I have seen in addition, for he has 
shown it to me, the medal of one of the first medical institutions 
in the vrorld — that of Paris — acknowledging, and in the name of 
France pronouncing him the discoverer of this agent, and that he 
had been able — for it was a good fortune on his part — to make a 
discovery which has been more beneficial to humanity than any 
discovery made in the medical profession since the time of vac- 
cination. 

Mr. HALE. I am not one of those who object to the propo- 
sition on account of the amount of money. If this discovery 
really belongs to Dr. Morton, it is no more than right that we 
should pay for it ; because, whatever may be the value of the 
patent right, it is such a discovery that he cannot enforce his pat- 
ent rights. It seems to me that the Government of the United 
States, having granted a patent by their own officers, are estopped 
from denying its validity ; and as the Government is making use 



479 

of it in the army and navy so extensively, it seems to me but 
fair to compensate this gentleman. 

I have been through the Massachusetts general hospital, where 
this remedial agent was first introduced, and where it was tested. 
I went through all the wards and rooms of that hospital, and 1 
saw every fofm of disease and suffering. I went into the dis- 
secting room, and I confess my blood almost ran cold as I looked 
at the instruments of torture, as they appeared to me, which were 
about the room ; but I was assured by the physicians attending 
upon that hospital that, by the use of this remedial agent, pa- 
tients were insensible to the operation of these instruments of tor- 
ture — that the effect of it was to make them go quietly to sleep; 
and that the most difficult and dangerous operations weje per- 
formed there every day, without those on whom they were per- 
formed being sensible of them. That great hospital is one of the 
finest charities on the face of the earth ; and by the operation of 
this agent the most revolting surgical operations are performed 
every day, while the patients are, as it were, in a deep sleep. 

I do not believe that there has been a greater contribution made 
to the cause of humanity anywhere. I d& not put this discovery 
second to vaccination, or anything else ; and if the Senate are de- 
termined to vote upon it to-day, I hope they will make this ap- 
propriation ; and w^ith my present convictions, although I should 
be glad to postpone the subject until the next session, in ordel- to 
avoid all danger of injustice, I must vote for this appropriation. 

Mr. DOUGLAS. I shall occupy but a few moments as to the 
claim of Dr. Wells. I hold here a paper which has been laid on 
our tables, and which I understand to be an abstract of testimony 
taken in the House of Representatives. I find here two letters, 
which have passed between Dr. Morton and Dr. Wells, putting 
to rest the claim of Dr. Weils, brought forward by the Senator 
from Connecticut. When Dr. Morton made his discovery, as he 
alleges, he wTote to his old friend and partner. Dr. Wells, to this 
effect : 

" Boston, October 19, 1846. 

" Friend Wells — Dear Sir : I write to inform you that I 
have discovered a preparation, by inhaling which a person is 
thrown into a sound sleep. The time required to produce sleep 
is only a few moments, and the time in which persons remain 
asleep can be regulated at pleasure. While in this state the 
severest surgical or dental operations may be performed, the 
patient not experiencing the shghtest pain. I have perfected it, 
aiid am nov/ about sending out agents to dispose of the right to 
use it. 1 will dispose of a right to an individual to use it in his 
own practice alone, or for a town, county, or State. My object 
in writing you is to know if you would not like to visit New 
York and the other cities, and dispose of rights upon shares. I 



480 

have used the compound in more than one hundred and sixty 
c-ases in extracting teeth, and I have been invited to administe'r 
to patients in the Massachusetts General Hospital, and have suc- 
ceeded in every case. 

•'•' The Professors Warren and Hayward have given me written 
certificates to this effect. I have administered it at the hospital 
in the presence of the students and physicians — the room for 
operations being as full as possible. For further particulars I 
will refer you to extracts from the daily journals of this city, 
which I forward to you. 

^'' Respectful! V vours. 

* '*•' willia:\i t. g. morton." 

Let U5 see what Dr. Wells said in reply : 

'•'Hartford, Co-v>'ECTicrT, October 20, 1S46. 
'• Dr. MoRToy — Dear Sir : Your letter dated yesterday, is just 
received, and I hasten to answer it, for fear you will adopt a 
method in disposing of your rights which will defeat your object. 
-Before you make any arrangement whatever, I wish to see you. 
I thmk I will be in Boston the first of next week — probably 
Monday night. If the operation of administering the gas is not 
attended with too much trouble, and will produce the effect you 
state, it will, undoubtedly, be a fortune to you, provided ft is 
rightly managed. 

'•' Yours, in haste. 

•• H. WELLS. ^• 

Isow, upon the face of these two documents, I do no: under- 
stand exactly how it is broadly asserted here, that Dr. Wells is 
the inventor or discoverer of this remedial agent. 

I confess that before I examined the matter my prejudices were 
against this claim, until my colleague in the other House, [Mr. 
BissELL,] who is a regularly-educated physician, a man of great 
intelligence, who has had practice as a physician, took it up, and 
as chairman of that select committee, gave it a thorough investi- 
gation. This report produced entire conviction upon mv mind 
that Dr. Morton was entitled to the credit of this discovery. 

I do not mean, nor does that report mean, th::t he discovered 
s^ilphuric ether, or that he was the first man tha' ever admistered 
sulphuric ether, but simply that he discovered the application of 
sulphuric ether with reference to destroying pain in surorical oper- 
ations, and that he discovered it to a degree and extent in which 
it had not before been administered, and in which it was sup- 
posed it was not safe to administer it. He risked his own life by 
experiments upon his own pei-son ; and then he administered it to 
other persons and ran the risk of a prosecution for malpractice in 
the event that it should fail. I became satisfied from the testi- 



481 

mony that he alone made the experiments, and he alone introduced 
it to the public ; that he Introduced it first into the general hos- 
pital of Massachusetts, and from there to the world ; that he took 
the entire, sole and exclusive resporisibility of the use and intro- 
duction of this agent, until his entire success had been established. 

I also find from the report, that while these experiments were 
going on — while it was doubtful whether they would prove suc- 
cessful— Dr. Jackson was ridiculing and denouncing Dr. Morton 
as a reckless man, who was hazarding the life of his patients by 
administering this agent to them, and that he never set up hisclaimj 
although experiments were being made in the immediate vicinity 
of his own house, until after those experiments had proven suc- 
cessful, and the judgment of the world was about to be pronounced 
in favor of Dr. Morton, and of this invention that had been made 
by him. 

I find this in the report of the committee of the House of Rep- 
resentatives, and I understand that both parties were represented 
before that committee. Taking, then, the report of that commit- 
tee, before whom both parties were represented in person, and by 
their counsel, where testimony was adduced, and taking that re- 
port in connection with the judgment of the general hospital of 
Massachusetts, where the first experiments were made,-and taking 
all the testimony together, I cannot doubt that the credit is solely 
due to Dr. Morton. 

Mr. WALKER. Mr. President, I will ask the attention of the 
Senate for a very few moments. I profess to be one who has 
looked into this matter from its foundation to its capstone. 1 
have read everything that has been printed, everything that is 
extant on the part of both parties, and I believe everything which 
they have im manuscript. 

After Dr. Morton had administered this anaesthetic agent in his 
dental establishment, he immediately resorted to the Massachu- 
setts general hospital. He got the consent of such men as Dr. 
Warren, Dr. Hay ward, and Dr. Bigelow, that he might there ad- 
minister it in a capital operation. That operation was performed 
on the 16th of October, 1846. Again he performed an operation 
on the 17th of October, and so he continued down to the 2d Jan- 
uary, 1847, when these surgeons say was the first they ever heard 
of the claim of Dr. Jackson. The most distinguished medical 
men in America swear and certify to this. But this is not all. 
This matter underwent a serious and candid investigation before 
the medical men, the surgeons, and trustees of that institution, 
and they came solemnly to the conclusion, first, that Dr. Jackson 
had never made any discovery in regard to ether which had not 
been known long before ; second, that Dr. Morton did, in 1846, 
manifest and make plain, and pmblish to the world, that sulphuric 
ether, administered in proper quantities and in a proper manner, 



482 

would produce entire insensibility to any operation. They also 
decided most solemnly against the claims of Dr. Wells. Not 
only is that so, but we have here, under the hand of Dr. Wells, 
an acknowledgment that the discovery w^as Dr. Morton's. Dr. 
Wells not merely acknowledged it to be Dr. Morton's discovery, 
but gave him advice about it, and said it would be a fortune to 
him if he managed it rightly. 

Did the general hospital of Massachusetts stop there? No, sir. 
Dr. Jackson came forward before those great men, and expressed 
his dissatisfaction at the decision which they had made. He prayed 
that they might review their decision, and at his request they did 
review it, one year afterwards, and came solemnly again to the 
decision to w^hich they had previously come. This w^as in Bos- 
ton, where the parties lived. This decision was arrive«d at by 
the most scientific men of the continent of America, if not of the 
world. They reviewed their decision, had the claims again laid 
before them, and came again solemnly to the same conclusion. 

In the meantime, however, and while Dr. Jackson was de- 
nouncing Dr. Morton as a "reckless" man, as one who had 
made no discovery whatever, and wdio w^ould kill somebody if he 
did not stop his experiments, wrote a letter to M. Elie de Beau- 
mont, of the Academy of Arts and Sciences of Paris. That letter 
was sent under secret seal, and it w^as dated November 13, 1846, 
just at the very time when he was denouncing Dr. Morton as a 
reckless WTetch who w'ould kill somebody. He sent that letter, 
w^ith a request that it should not be opened until he gave further 
information in regard to it. The investigation w^ent on before 
these daring men of the Massachusetts general hos]3ital, and by 
Dr. Morton, no less daring, until the 2d of November, 1846 ; and 
in this country. Dr. Jackson was never heard of as claiming the 
discovery before that time. In December, 1846, he wrote an- 
other letter, requesting M. de Beaumont to open the sealed pack- 
age. He opened it and read it, and, on the spur of the occasion, 
Yelpeau answered it with a sneer^ and said : 



1 



"The secret contained in the note which has been read is no 
longer a secret ; the medical journals published in America and 
England have divnilged it in the months of November and De- 
cember. A letter from Dr. Warren, of Boston, communicated 
the information to me more than one month ago ; and Dr. Willis 
Fisher, of the same city, proposed that I should try its eSects at 
La Charite towards the middle of last December.'* 

That letter of Dr. Jackson's was thus answered by a no less 
distinguished man than M. Velpeau, before the Academy of Arts 
and Sciences in Paris. But this secret letter had a fatal effect — 
an effect which I am sure the Academy of Arts and Sciences never 
ceased to regret. What did it do? It procured, upon the ex- 



483 

citement of the moment, a decision of the Academy of Arts and 
Sciences of France, awarding to Dr. Jackson twenty-five hundred 
francs, being one ©f the Monthyon prizes of that institution, and 
he received the money. But when the good Dr. Warren, and 
Dr. Hayward, and Dr. Bigelow, and others of the Massachusetts 
general hospital, who knew all about it, placed this persecuted 
man. Dr. Morton, before the world, and established his claim, 
what did the Academy of Arts and Sciences do? We know it is 
the nature of that institution never to take back 'anything which 
it does. It will not acknowledge fallibility; but it went to the 
extent to which it could go. It aw^arded to Dr. Morton another 
prize oi the Monthyon foundation, of twenty-five hundred francs — 
as what? Just for what Fulton was, just fiar what Jenner, the 
discoverer of vaccination, was, and for what all other men are, 
who come before the world making discoveries. The Academy 
of Arts and Sciences gave him this Monthyon prize for being the 
man who had discovered, and made beneficial to the world, the 
use of sulphuric ether as an ansesthetic agent. 

Notwithstanding that Dr. Morton had to fight the medical and 
literary magazines of the country — notwithstanding he had to 
fight Dr. Jackson, and almost everybody else — for nearly all the 
surgeons in the country, except those in the Massachusetts gene- 
ral hospital, frowned upon him — notwithstanding all this reduced 
him to poverty, yet, like a noble man, as he is, he declined to re- 
ceive the two thousand five hundred francs in money. Still, so 
anxious was the Academy of Arts and Sciences to place in his 
hands evidences of their exalted recognition of his rights, that 
they directed a certain portion of the fund to be paid in the shape 
of their largest gold medal. That did not exhaust the entire fund, 
and the friends of Dr. Morton in France took the balance of it and 
used it in enclosing the medal in a beautiful gold frame, so that it 
altogether now presents the beautiful thing which I hold in my 
hand, [exhibiting it to the Senate.] Dr. Morton would not receive 
the money, but he received that w^hich he could treasure in his 
heart, and could look upon as an evidence of the appreciation of 
his exertions by this noble Academy of Arts and Sciences of Paris. 
It is a noble appreciation of him who gave this invaluable dis- 
covery to the world. It shows whom they considered as the real 
discoverer. 

When you come to look at the testimony on which the claim 
of Dr. Jackson is based ; when you come to inquire really what 
it is, it would seem most astounding that any one in the world 
should come forward with such a claim. What was it ? At first 
he claimed nothing more than that he had told Dr. Morton that 
ether could be taken safely into the lungs. Anybody in the world 
could have told him that. This substance had been known since 
the thirteenth century. Its formation was accurately described 
by Valerius Cordus, in the sixteenth century. Frobenius first 



484 

designated it etlier, and published an account of it in the pMlo- 
sophical transactions in 1730. Its use as a medical agent, first 
alluded to by Valerius Cordus, and mentioned by Hofiman, Cullen, 
Alston, Lewis and ?^Ionroe, and other writers of the last century, 
has long been familiarly known. The history of its use by in- 
halation, commenced with the pamphlet published in 1795, by 
B»ichard Pearson; and several communications from the same 
Dr. Pearson are to be found in the work of Dr. Beddoes on Fac- 
titious Airs, published at Bristol, England, in 1796. The same 
work contains a letter from one of Dr. Thornton's patients, giving 
an account of his use of ether, by Dr. Thornton's advice, in a 
case of pectorial catarrh. He says, "it gave almost immediate 
relief both to the oppression ajid pain in the chest." Qn the 
second trial, he inhaled two spoonfuls, with " immediate relief, 
as before, and I very soon after fell asleep.'' In 1815, Nysten, 
in the Directory of Medical Sciences, speaks of the inhalation of 
ether as familiarly known for mitigating pains in colic. For the 
last fifty years, most therapeutic authors mention its use by in- 
halation in asthma, &c., as Duncan, Murray, Brande, Christison,. 
Pereira, Thompson, Barbier, Wendt, Vogt, Sundelin, &c. Effects 
analagous to intoxication, when ether is inhaled, are stated by 
American authors, as Godman, (1822,) Mitchell, (1832,) Professor 
Samuel Jackson, (1833,) Wood & Bache, (1834,) Miller, (1846, 
and early in that year.) 

Dr. John C. Warren, in his work on Etherization, says : 

*^ The general properties of ether have been known for more 
than a century, and the effect of its inhalation, in producing ex~ 
hilaration and insensibility, has been understood for many years, 
not only by the scientific, but by young men in colleges and 
schools, and in the shop of the apothecary, who have frequently 
employed it for these purposes." 

From the days of Hippocrates down, there has been an effort 
to obtain an anesthetic agent — something to lull the patient in 
surgical operations. But until Dr. Morton, with what physicians 
termed a daring spirit, came forward and demonstrated it to the 
world, the right agent had never been found. There is among 
the testimony, the certificate of the person on whom the agent 
was first employed. Dr. Morton first extracted teeth in this way. 
He then went to Dr. Warren, and got him to consent to perform 
a surgical operation upon a patient, rendered insensible by this 
agent, which he did perform on the 16th of October, 1846. Dr. 
Morton repeated his experiments in surgical operations at the 
hospital, on the 17tli of October, and continually from that day 
down to the 2d of January, 1847, when Dr. Jackson first made 
known that he ever had any claim. 



485 

The trustees of the general hospital of Massachusetts, as a 
testimonial of the services of Dr. Morton, raised a fund of one 
thousand dollars ^ but knowing his sensitiveness on the subject, 
and in order to make the compliment more acceptable to him, 
that there might remain something connected with it as an endu- 
ring monument of their gratitude, they inclosed the amount in a 
silver casket, containing an engraving manifesting their fourth 
decision, as you may say, in his favor. 

Again, as another testimonial, I may state that the subject was 
brought up in the Thirtieth Congress, before a select committee 
of the House of Representatives, and with all the testimony be- 
fore them, they decided that Dr. Morton was the discoverer« 
Here, again, in this Congress, after another review of all the 
testimony, Dr. Morton appearing before them in person, and Dr. 
Jackson, both in person and by counsel, a select committee of the 
House of Representatives has decided Dr. Morton to be the dis- 
coverer. 

All that there is now to answer against his claim, is the re- 
monstrance to which the senator from Maine has alluded ; and 
what is that remonstrance ? It is a remonstrance said to be 
signed by one hundred and forty-four physicians. The register 
of physicians of Massachusetts shows that there are about fifteen 
hundred in that State. Not one of these remonstators was in 
the General Hospital of Massachusetts at the time this discovery 
was brought out ; but, on the contrary, a great many of them 
are dentists, who were personal enemies and personal rivals of 
Dr. Morton, and they are to this day his personal rivals. At the 
time he was risking his life to bring out this discovery, they were 
denouncing him, and endeavoring to put him down. They were 
getting up prosecutions against him, to drive him, if possible, 
from respectable society. Yet these are the men who come for- 
ward and remonstrate ! But, is it true, as the remonstrance 
states, that it is from "Boston and its vicinity?" I have here 
the State record of Massachusetts, and I find that the names on 
that remonstrance are scattered all over the State. There are 
three hundred medical men in Boston alone, and here are one 
hundred and forty-four remonstrants from the whole State of 
Massachusetts, and these are Dr. Morton's rivals — men who had 
first given him notes, and then refused to pay them, and became 
his enemies, and tried to make out that he had made no discovery 1 
The remonstrance is dated in February last, and they have been 
ransacking the State of Massachusetts, from that time to this, to 
get up remonstrators against Dr. Morton, and they have suc- 
ceeded in getting one hundred and forty-four out of fifteen hun- 
dred in that State. 

We have two reports of the hospital of Massachusetts ; we 
have the prize awarded by the Academy of Arts and Sciences of 



486 

Paris ; we have the award of a casket and one tlionsand dollars 
by the trustees of the Massachusetts hospital ; we have the re- 
ports of two select committees of the House of Eepresentatives ; 
we have the concurrent voice of two committees — the Committee 
on Military Affairs and the Committee on Naval Affaii's — of this 
body : and there is nothing to answer it but this simple remon- 
strance of which we have heard to-day. TTe have nothing in an 
authentic shape to controvert all these testimonials. Most cf 
these remonstrants do not state that they know anything about 
the facts, but simply give their *' belief." Why not go to Dr. 
Warren, Dr. Hayward, or Dr. Bigelow ? Why not go to the 
various men who cut off legs and arms, and extirpated tumors, 
and performed the most dreadful sm'gical operations with the aid 
of this agent, when Dr. Morton was making his first experiments ? 
Y/hy did not Dr. Jackson do that ? Why did he not bring the 
names of some sui'geons to certify that he discovered this 'i He 
could not do it. 

These awards to Dr. Morton, the concurrent testimony of all 
these individuals, speak a voice in America and Europe, and now 
it is even heard in Asia. But why do we get up a controversy^ 
here about the real discoverer of this remedial agent ? I have in 
my possession the original patent, in which it is expressly recited 
that Dr. Jackson has assigned all his interest in the matter. 
How did he get any interest ? It was through the mistake of the 
lawyer who was employed in regard to obtaining a patent. Dr. 
Jackson went to him, and finding him employed in endeavoring 
to obtain a patent, observed that he had something to do with 
that matter. The lawyer asked him what he had to do with it. 
"Why, I told Dr. Morton that ether could be administered with 
safety." Everybody knew that before. But did he know that 
pain could be destroyed under its administration ? No, sir. He 
does not attempt to prove it. But let anybody read the review, 
by both select committees of the House of Representatives, of the 
testimony by which he undertakes to prove it ; and if they could 
ever thereafter believe his witnesses, it is more than I could do. 
There is not one particle of testimony given, to prove that Dr. 
Jackson ever said or ever supposed that ether could be so admin- 
istered as to annihilate pain. All that Dr. Morton wanted to 
know, in order to be sure, was, that he was not running the risk 
of murder. Dr. Jackson said it could be administered with safety. 
He told the patent lawyer that he had something to do with it — 
that he had given this information to Dr. Morton ; and then that 
lawyer, Mr. Eddy, through a mistake, not knowing the facts, 
proposed that Dr. Jackson should have some remuneration. What 
do you think Dr. Jackson was content with, in the fii'st instance ? 
Did he claim any part of this discovery ? 



487 

Mr. Eddj thought that Dr. Morton ought to make some credit, 
or do something ; and all Dr. Jackson then asked v^as five hundred 
dollars for medical advice ; and, according to his own language, 
he went home and charged Dr. Morton upon his books five hun- 
dred dollars for medical advice ; and Dr. Morton executed a bond 
to pay Dr. Jackson five hundred dollars, provided ten per cent, 
upon the patent ^.yould make that sum. He subsequently claimed 
ten per cent- upon the patent ; and then claimed twenty-five per 
cent. ; and ultimately claimed that he was the real discoverer of 
the whole. But, however that ma^y be, whatever straits Dr. Mor- 
ton may have been in, I say here is the patent in the name of 
Dr. Morton, and in it Dr. Jackson surrenders any title he could 
by possibility have. Sut, whatever Dr. Jackson may be able to 
show hereafter that he is entitled to, I shall be w^illing to grant 
to him. 

I must make this further remark . Dr. Morton has been pursued 
in every step he has taken in this matter. It is in evidence be- 
fore the committee of the House of Representatives, and they 
have reported the fact, that there were raised in England at one 
time by subscription ten thousand pounds, for the discoverer of 
the anaesthetic properties of ether, and the payment of it to Dr. 
Morton was prevented by the agitation raised by Dr. Jackson. 
Dr. Morton has been pursued by people hunting on his track. 
They are still following him. Here they are, now, pursuing him 
through the mouth of the Senator from Connecticut. But I do 
not blame him for making any representations he may see proper 
in regard to Dr. Wells ; but I say that the original claim of Dr. 
Wells is altogether refuted by his own evidence, and by his own 
advice to Dr. Morton. 

Then, taking all these public monuments, as you may call 
them, as evidence of the right of Dr. Morton, running from 
1846 to 1852, how can it be possibly said that we are taking a 
snap judgment on anybody ? It cannot be truly said. This 
subject has been long considered, and the judgment of the vforld 
has been in favor of Dr. Morton's rights. But here is the pa- 
tent, and here he is the assignee of any rights that Dr. Jackson 
may have had. 

A proposition now comes up from the Committee on Military 
Aifairs to procure a surrender of that patent; and for what 
reason is that opposed ? Why, that by paying this, we may do 
something wrong to some other individual. Sir, the patent has 
been granted at the Patent Office. That is the tribunal esta- 
blished by the Constitution and the laws to decide to whom a 
patent is due. That institution did decide the patent to be due 
to Dr. Morton, and it was issued to him, and any rights which 
Dr. Jackson had in it are recited in the patent as being assigned 
to Dr. Morton. Then he (Dr. Jackson) can have no claims. 



488 

But it is not pretended that Dr. Jackson or Dr. Wells liave got a 
patent. It is known that they did not get any. Dr. Morton 
has the patent, and this appropriation is proposed for the pur- 
pose of obtaining the surrender of that patent. 

Mr. MALLORY. I am pleased to have this opportunity to 
manifest, by a vote upon this proposition, my appreciation of the 
importai:yce of the subject to vfhich it refers ; and, sir, if no 
voice in its behalf had been hitherto raised, if no advocate had 
ever before appeared to press the claims of him whose successful 
devotion, whose self-sacrificing labors have secured for him 
throughout the earth this heaven-born gift — I would have consi- 
dered it one of the high privileges of the place I occupy to 
stand forth in that attitude. But, sir, such fortunately is not its 
position ; for the earnest appeals of men, women, and children, 
the united and consistent testimony of the learned and the un- 
lettered throughout this broad land, have raised up for it here 
unwavering friends. 

This amendment, Mr. President, proposes to pay to the dis- 
cover of the anesthetic properties of sulphuric ether, inhaled, 
and of their extraordinary advantages to medicine and surgery, 
one hunded thousand dollars, upon the condition that he shall 
relinquish it to the free enjoyment of mankind, and abandon all 
the rights of a discoverer and patentee. If the question be 
asked, Yf hat is the character of the service rendered ? what is the 
utility of the discovery ? the response comes from thousands of 
our fellow-citizens, in every walk of life, whom gratitude has 
made eloquent. It comes from the lowly couch of the poor- 
house patient, and from the aristocratic mansion of tha millionaire 
— from feeble woman in the agonies entailed upon her first diso- 
bedience, and from the stern, strong man, writhing in pain. It 
comes from your battle-fields, from your military, naval, and 
civil hospitals, from your gallant soldiers and sailors tortured by 
wounds and amputations. It comes to you from the practitioner 
in every department of medicine, and with our consent the sur- 
geons of the Old and New World hail it as the great discovery 
of the age. Its claims have been examined by select committees 
of Congress, aided by able counsel, with an industry and accu- 
racy equally honorable to them and to the subject. The trustees 
of the Massachusetts General Hospital presented the discoverer 
with one thousand dollars, and an appropriate letter. The chiefs 
of our own Departments, our Surgeon (General, and the head of 
our Naval Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, give it their unquali- 
fied approval, and the Academy of Sciences of Paris, after a 
thorough investigation of its character, conferred upon its dis- 
coverer the ''Monthyon gold medal'' as an extraordinary mark 
of its approbation. 



489 

Such are a few of the thousand evidences of the various cha- 
racters from Europe and America in its favor. And well, sir, 
does it merit this praise. Hitherto the surgeon's skill, though 
advancino: with aiiffantic strides, has been circumscribed and con- 
trolled bj the power of endurance of his patient ; and many 
operations which comparative anatomy justifies and demands for 
the salvation of life, have been rendered impracticable bj their 
tortures upon an enfeebled or agonized frame, or by their violent 
shock to the whole nervous system ; and thousands have annually 
perished whom this discovery might have saved. Men of un- 
doubted courage, wounded at last, after facing death in many 
forms, shrunk with undefined terror from the prospect which the 
cold-blooded torture of the surgeon's knife holds before their 
eyes ; and timid woman, sinking beneath disease, not unfrequently 
prefers the pains of death to the untold horrors of the operator's 
table. But all this is now passed. The knife has lost its terrors, 
the tourniquet and saw are regarded without a shudder, and the 
appearance of the surgeon by the pallet of the untimely sufferer 
is hailed with joy, for he not only banishes pain, but substitutes 
for an anguished frame the happy dreams of a joyous spirit. In 
the language of the venerable and eminent Dr. Warren — 

"A new era has opened to the operating surgeon ! His visi- 
tations on the most delicate parts are performed, not only without 
the agonizing screams he has been accustomed to hear, but some- 
times with a state of perfect insensibility, and occasionally even 
with the expression of pleasure on the part of the patient. Who 
could have imagined that drawing the knife over the delicate skin 
of the face might produce a sensation of unmixed delight ? — that 
the turning and twisting of instruments in the most sensitive 
parts might be accompanied by a beautiful dream ? — -that the 
contorting of anchylosed joints should coexist with a celestial 
vision ? If Ambrose Pare, and Louis, and Dessault, and Ches- 
selden, and Hunter, and Cooper, could see what our eyea daily 
witness, how would they long to come among us, and perform 
their exploits once more ? And with what fresh vigour does the 
living surgeon, who is ready to resign the scalpel, grasp it, and 
wish again to go through his career under new auspices !" 

If I felt justified, Mr. President, in view of the pressing legis- 
lation yet before us, I would embrace this occasion to give the 
conclusive testimony of the principal practitioners of Europe and 
America in its behalf ; but I do not feel authorized to consume a 
nioment beyond a mere reference to them. In the eloquent tes- 
timony of Holmes — 



490 

^^ The knife is searching for disease — the pulleys are dragging 
hack dislocated limbs — nature herself is working out the primal 
curse which doomed the tenderest of her creatures to the sharp- 
est of her trials ; but the fierce extremity of suffering has been 
steeped in the waters of forgetfulness, and the deepest furrovf in 
the knotted brow of agony has been smoothed forever." 

And now, Mr. President, if it be difficult to establish a stand- 
ard hj which merit generally is to be rewarded, how utterly im- 
possible must it be to determine its proper bounds in a case like 
the present, in which an humble individual is the donor, and the 
whole human family the recipient. His most enduring and valu- 
able reward will be in the undying gratitude of a posterity whose 
lot is suffering and pain, and a supreme happiness flowing from 
gratitude to God for being made the medium of such a boon to 
his creatures. But, sir, let us fulfil our duty. We cannot pay 
Dr. Morton — his services are beyond price; but we can place 
his future life beyond the reach of poverty, and in this manner 
do justice to om'selves ; for, Mr. President, to the living searchers 
after truth, as well as to those children of genius who are yet to 
struggle in her paths, and in the eyes of all honorable men, the 
course of the American Senate upon this question will be a 
beacon of warning or of hope. 

I believe not the worn-out apophthegm, that republics are un- 
grateful. Ingratitude is the crime of men, not of political or- 
ganizations ; and the sons of Adam possess in common the same 
virtues and vices. But yet, sir, there is much upon history's 
page to justify the proposition, even within our own short politi- 
cal existence. The graves of our revolutionary sages are un- 
known to their free and happy descendants. No Old Mortality 
renews their fleeting letters; and the monument of its father 
and hero struggles lingeringly upwards, stone by stone, in spite 
of their seeming indifference. 

Fulton's merits were disregarded ; and he was suffered to die 
owing more dollars than would have covered him in his grave. In 
pleasing contrast to this, sir, is the grant of the British Parlia- 
ment of $150,000 to Dr. Jenner for his discovery of vaccination, 
and its liberal reward of discoveries in various walks of science. 
I am persuaded that the objection, based upon a constitutional 
prohibition, made by the honorable Senator from New York, is 
not seriously urged ; and certainly upon one of the alternatives 
suggested by him we can reward this applicant. I never saw 
him till within a day or two, and I know personally nothing of 
him, but entertain no doubt of the justice of his claim, and hope 
the amendment will pass. 



491 

Mr. BADGER. I know not, Mr. President, what private griefs 
the honorable senator from Connecticut, [Mr. Smith] has; but 
certainly something or other seems to have stimulated him into a 
very undue excitement on this occasion, one not usual upon ques- 
tions of this kind, and one which certainly that senator is not in 
the habit of exhibiting in the Senate. The honorable senator 
demands an opportunity of making out a case — for whom ? For 
clients of his. Does he demand that we shall postpone this in- 
quiry, in order that we may have another investigation at the 
next session ? If so, that is one strong reason with me why we 
should promptly decide it now. I do not want to occupy two 
months out of three of the ensuing session with the investigation 
of these contradictory claims, which the honorable senator deires 
to set up on this subject. 

I shall vote for the amendment which has been recommended 
by two committees of this body. Of this man. Dr. Morton, I 
know little. I have seen him in this city, and that is all. About 
Jiim, as an individual, I care nothing. But I am called upon here 
to determine whether I will vote for an appropriation to procure 
the surrender of a patent which he has obtained from the Govern- 
ment of the United States, for the use of what is, beyond all 
doubt, one of the most valuable bounties that has ever been be- 
stowed upon mankind. 

The honorable Senator talks about chloroform ; but does he not 
know, that however valuable chloroform is, as an agent in these 
cases, it is at the same time, a dangerous one; and many who 
have gone to sleep with it to be relieved from the pain of an 
operation to be performed, have waked no more ? whereas, I have 
it from surgeons of the highest respectability that, with regard 
to this particular agent, though it has been used in thousands of 
cases, there is not known an instance in which fatal or dangerojus 
consequences have resulted from its use. That is what I under- 
stand. Of course, I cannot speak upon the subject from any 
knowledge of my own. 

Dr. Morton has a patent for this invention. The honorable 
Senator from Connecticut says the subject-matter of the patent 
is not patentable. Upon that question I take issue with him ; 
but this is not the place to decide it. The patent has been 
granted. The subject-matter patented is in daily use, and has 
been in use for years in the army and navy of the United States, 
to the great advantage of the surgical departments of those corps, 
and to the benefit and relief of poor sufferers who were compelled 
to be subject to surgical operations. It is used by the public 
generally. And now I ask, if it is becoming the Congress of the 
United States to say to this man, " We have granted you a patent ; 
we use the discovery for which we have granted you that patent ; 
but there are other people in the world who claim that they 



492 

originally liit upon this idea, and therefore -sre will not pay you 
for the use of your invention?" This man has reduced it to 
practice : he has made it accessible to common and ordinary use. 

But it is said that Dr. Morton has not prosecuted those who 
have violated his patent. To me, this is no objection. It is no 
objection in my mind, that he has not discovered himself to be a 
litigious person, disposed to bring before the law every surgeon 
of the army and navy, and in private practice, who has used it 
for the relief of suffering humanity. Besides all that, I have 
practiced law too long not to know, that whoever goes to law, 
whatever else he may be, is no wise man ; and that he who goes 
there, goes not for his own benefit, but for the benefit of clerks, 
sheriffs, and lawyers. I think, in that respect, therefore, he has 
acted as a wise and humane man. 

I do not undertake to decide on this question from information 
which I have derived from Dr. Morton. I never had any con- 
versation with him upon the subject of the invention; I refused 
to have any conversation with him. I have refused to read any- 
thing which he has written upon the subject, but I rely upon in- 
form.ation which I have received from impartial sources, and the 
unanimous report of the Committee on Military Affairs. Upon 
that I am willing to vote. We are taking no snap judgment 
upon any person — the clients of the senator from Connecticut, or 
otherwise. We merely propose to purchase for the use of the 
public service, what we think is a valuable, or rather, I should 
say, an invaluable remedial agent. 



REPORT 

TO THE 

HOUSE OF REPKESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 

VINDICATING THE RIGHTS 

OP 

CHARLES T. JACKSON 

TO THE 

DISCOVERY OF THE ANAESTHETIC EFFECTS 

OF 

ETHEE VAPOR, 

AND 

DISPROVING THE CLAIMS OF W. T. G. MORTON, 

TO THAT DISCOVERY. 



Presented to the House of Representatives of the United States, 28th of August, 1862, by 

HON. EDWARD STANLY, OF NORTH CAROLINA, AND 
HON. ALEXANDER EVANS, OF MARYLAND, 

Members of the Select Committee on the Ether Discovery. ' 



PRINTED BY AUTHORITY OF THE MINORITY OP THE COMMITTEE. 



REPUBLISHED WITH NOTES. 



REPORT. 



The undersigned, a member of the select committee to whom 
the memorial of W. T. G. Morton, concerning the discovery of the 
anaesthetic effects of sulphuric ether, was referred, dissenting from 
the conclusions, and still more irom the tone and argument of the 
report of the majority, submits his views as to the facts and ques- 
tions which were presented to the committee for investigation. 

Mr. W. T. G. Morton presented a memorial to Congress, pray- 
ing, in substance, for an appropriation to him of money from the 
treasury of the United States, in consideration of the use by the 
army and navy of his alleged discovery of the ancssthetic effects 
of sulphuric ether. 

Dr. Charles T. Jackson, having been informed by the committee . See Ma- 
of Morton's memorial and claim, presented his remonstrance against |^^J^^^ 3^" 
any appropriatiou of money to Mr. Morton for this purpose, upon that' Dr! 
the ground that the discovery of the aneesthetic effects of sulphuric Morton 
ether was not made by Mr. Morton, but by himself. The main j'^'^/^^^^y^^^ 
question at issue before the select committee to whom the memo- invoked 
rial and remonstrance were referred, was, as to the relative claims the con- 
of Mr. Morton and Dr. Jackson to this discovery ; for no doubt was ^^^^^y^\ 
entertained by any of the committee that a discovery had been son's pre- 
made of an inestimable benefit to the country and world.* The tensions, 
undersip^ned dissents from the conclusion of the majoritv upon this ^^3?^^^ • 
question.! He regards the report as having nothing judicial in its would have 
character, and as a partisan argument in defence of Mr. Morton's been pre- 
pretensions. It rejects all the testimony of the many unimpeach- rented be- 
able w^itnesses as to the main facts in support of Dr. Jackson's committee, 
claim. It admits the statements of witnesses, in behalf of Mr. *Mr. Stan- 
Morton, who have been impeached and contradicted. t It assumes ley was ab- 
that the statements of Dr. Jackson, whose character is above all ^^^^ during 
yeproach, are entitled to no credit, and conveys the impression ^^^^ ^^^by 
that he is a mere pretender. § It gives implicit confidence to the counsel for 

Dr. Morton : and at the close of the argument for Dr. Jackson, called on his counsel to ex- 
plain the fact testified to by Mr. C. Eddy, that Jackson expressly declared (see Eddy's 
testimony, p. 286,) on the 23d of October, 1846, that he "did not know" at the time of ki^ 
pretended covirmini cation to Morton^ "THAT AFTER A person HAD inhaled ETHER AND WAS 
ASLEEP, HIS FLESH COULD BE CUT WITH A KNIFE WITHOUT HIS EXPERIENCING ANY PAIN, &C." 

And Mr. Stanley left the committee room without receiving any explanation on this cardinal 
point. 

t This is an unwarranted attack on the whole committee except himself. 

X The case of Dr. Morton is fully made out by witnesses against whose credibility not a 
word has been breathed, viz : Hayden, Dana, Metcalf, Wightman, C. Eddy, ScC, &c. 

§ Dr. Jackson is flatly contradicted in the assential points of the controversy not only by 
other witnesses, hut by himself^ in his several statements. Besides, which it is evident that 
he has (to say the least) a monomania to claim the inventions of others. (See Amos Ken- 
dall's pamphlet exposing his claim of Morse's Telegraph.) 



496 

* Mr. Stan- declarations of Mr. Morton,* notwithstanding the evidence which 

ley himse^ j^^g been submitted to show his' bad character, and his own con- 

:Srst to tradictory statements.! It suppresses the material facts in the case, 

move^ the and presents conclusions at variance with the highest evidence. 

rejection of j^ gives judicial weight to the partisan papers of Mr. Morton's 

iiony as to advocates, and rejects the concurrent decisions of the highest sci- 

Dr. Mor- entific authority.! 

ton's cha- rpj^^ undersigned will hereafter refer, in detail, to the particular 

Morton * portions of the report which he considers objectionable, and will 

Tvaived all proceed, first, to an affirmative statement of the grounds upon 

objection, which he considers Dr. Jackson entitled to the sole honor of the 

the^^ ^ike fhscovery of the anaesthetic effects of sulphuric ether. 

liberty I^ determining a question of discovery, the character of the 

were left to claimant is an essential point of consideration. The scientific and 

^^™* •++!/ intellectual character of the claimant may furnish the strongest 
conimittee ii-ti ••i^ • •!• i 

excluded probabuity that scientific experiments or inductions were made 

the testi- by him, while, on the other hand, an absence of those attainments 
^*^t^ *~fWs ^"^' intellectual qualities, which seem a priori to be de- 

passage is [ 4 ] manded for a scientific discovery, may present so high an 
anfounded. improbability as to outweigh the most positive testimony 

(See page jj^ favor of the pretensions of the claimant. Great discoveries in 
science have never been accidental. § The occasions which have 

t This is hastened or aided the discovery may have been matters of acci- 
mere bold (j^nt ; but if the discovery were not premeditated or sought for, 
^?Fer^cofi- ^^^ knowledge of the relations of the new fact, which accident 
tra: See has presented, with known truth, must have existed. Although 
the exami- the seed may be wafted by the wind, it will germinate and bear 
der^oath^o'f ^^^^^ only in a cultivated and genial soil. Knowing this to be truth 
the most as to the past history of scientific discovery, we naturally inquire, 
prominent at the outset, whether the circumstances of Dr. Jackson's life and 
^^^^^^^^^ pursuits have been such as to render it probable that he might 
Boston. h&ye made the discovery of anaesthesia. Some of these may be 

§ Without briefly referred to. 

wasting ^ Dj.^ Charles T. Jackson received the degree of Doctor of Medi- 
this florid cine at Harvard University in 1829. At the time of his gradua- 
statement, tion he received from the Eoylston Medical Society the premium 
(which has f^^ ^he best dissertation upon a medico-chemical subject. Em- 
tion in the barking for France, after receiving his medical degree, he spent 
evidence three years in that country, engaged in the study of medicine, in 
^^^"^^\/^^ attending lectures at the Royal School of Mines, at the Academy 
and i-hick ^^ Sorbonne, and the College of France. During the summer of 
ike author 1832, at the request of the internes, he gave a course of private 
of the re- instructions and lectures in surgical anatom^y. On his return to 
Tave ^de- Boston he established himself in his profession as physician and 
rived from surgcou, in which he became eminently successful, especially in 
other sources,) it is enough to say, that if it were all tnie, it only shows (when collated 
with the fact,) that Dr. Morton's natural genius ran ahead of Dr. Jackson's scientific ad- 
vantages. 



497 

surgery. His taste for researches in analytical chemistry and 
geology gradually withdrew him from his profession. For many 
years past he has been almost exclusively employed as an analyt- 
ical chemist and practical geologist. He has made geological 
sijrveys of Maine, Rhode Island and New Hampshire, under the 
authority of their respective State governments. He made the 
^rst mining surveys on Lake Superior, and received the appoint- 
ment of United States Geologist for the survey of the mineral 
lands of that district. The labors of Dr. Jackson in chemistry 
and geology have given him a high place among the most emi- 
nent of our scientific men. 

It was the rare union of extraordinary medical and chemieal 
attainments which peculiarly fitted him to make a discovery which Tbis is a 
could not have originated with either the physician or chemist "■7"'^*^«^ 
alone. The possession of these attainments, andp more than all, ^^^^T^ "" 
a rare intuitive power of comprehending scientific truths, have led 
Br. Jackson's friends to consider him the man of all others to have 
made this discovery. 

Before proceeding to refer to the evidence by which the claims 
of Dr. Jackson are supported, the undersigned will briefly state 
the facts which appear to him to be proved, and define the grounds ^.^ ,, 
upon which he considers the claims to discovery rest. testimony 

1. Dr. Jackson inferred vvltli great confidence, from experiments of C.Eddy, 
performed ujjon himself and others, that, contrary to the opinion ""^^ ^^^ 
then universally entertained by ail m.edical authorities on the sub- go^y yet." 
ject, it is perfectly safe to inhale sulphuric ether to such an extent See also 
as to produce unconsciousness. ^^w evi- 

2. He discovered the two conditio7is on which the safety of Qj^^ndler^ 
etherization depends ; to wit, a due admixture of atmospheric air, Warren, * 
and the purity of ether from alcohol. Ignorance of these con- ^^^ others, 
ditions had caused the failure of most of the early experiments merely a^ 
with ether, by the principal surgeons of Paris, previous to the after- 
iiublication of Dr. Jackson's communication to the French Acad- tliought. 
emy, dated November 13, 1846/* M?son'* *^' 

o. Dr. Jackson discovered a new la/w of the human Varren 

constitution^ to wit, that the nerves of sensation may at [ 5 ] and H. j, 
pleasure be safely and completely paralyzed for a short "^ ^+ v^t^'h 
time, without the loss of consciousness, which state always pre- ^vorld was 
cedes and follows the state of total unconsciousness produced by in igno- 
sulphuric ether, and which, by carefully regulating the administra-f.^?^^ ^^ 
tion of the ether, may be produced and continued for a considera- ung^y^^la^ 
ble time without causing a loss of consciousness.! of the 

4. He discovered and verified, by an experiment made upon^\^°^^?^°^- 
himself, — an experiment which, for boldness and deliberate cour- fl^lg^*' y°^^J 
age, is almost without parallel in the history of science, — the phys- after ho 
iological fad that pure sulphuric ether duly mixed with a^- P^^^^^^s to 
mospheric air, has the power safely and completely to destroy covered*^1t 
exceedingly severe pain ; and inferred, with great confidence, that (1841-2.)'^ 
32 



■498 

♦Not only it has the power safely and surely to destroy any de<^ree of 
is there no -^^ ^ *' •' j ./ o 

this, but 5. He caused experiments to be made under his directions, and on 
the nega- his responsibihty,t which verified his conclusion as to the power of 
tive preg- syipi^upjc ether to prevent the pain of the severest surgical operations, 
against it. The facts above stated are conlirmed by the most direct and 
(See Mr. unimpeachable testimony. 

Whitney's 'j^j^g statements of a man of science, in relation to experiments 
p/395. made by himself, which, by the nature of the case, must be solely 
t Where is within his own knowledge, by the usage of the scientific v/orld 
the proof? are received with the highest confidence. It is the occupation of 
his clarm to his life to mvestigate and announce truth. His precise habits of 
liave com- observation prevent error. Great risks of life and property are 
jiiunicated hazarded upon his word. The habit of acctiracy is cultivated by 
sor Morse' ^^^^^ sense of responsihility under which he speaks, j 
the inveTi- The first piece of evidence to be referred to, in support of the 
tion of the above positions, is, therefore. Dr. Jacksooi^s ovjn statement as to 
SfS!,^/S his experiments and inductions. This statement, w^hich he ad- 
See Mr. dressed to the committee, and is the same addressed by mm to 
Whitney's Earon Humboldt, will be found at len<rth among the papers an- 
S'"''dis- Pe^-^f^ed to this report. 

proving all ^^' Jackson, after referring to experiments made hy him in the 
the essen- inhalation of various gases, and particularly protoxide of nitrogen, . 
tial points. T^y]x|^ ^ view to determine its effects in mitigating pain in surgical 

operations, states as follows : 
a; fact in "Having been appointed geologist and chemist to the State of: 
point by Maine in I806, I opened a large chemical laboratory, the next 
1839—^ ^° y6<i^3 foi* instructing my pupils, and for making the chemical 
whereas, analysis for the State, and had frequent occasion to experiment 
Dr. J.'s -^vith chlorine gas, and had accidents myself, as well as to my 
fco^^ Vave P^iP'^^Sj hy the breakage of vessels filled with this gas. Vapor of 
used it is alchohol was at that time the remedy we used for relief, and not 
In 1841-2 finding it to answer the purpose satisfactorily, I soon after tried the 
m^^ ^lll inhalation of sulphuric ether vapor, which, from 1837 to 1841, was 
Whitney, the means in habitual use in my laboratory for relieving persons 
from the effect of the action of clorine in the lungs. * * * * 
" In the winter of 1841-42, I made the discovery of anaes- 
thesia by ether vapor. * # * * * 
See Whit- " The circumstances were as follows : — In the winter of 1841- 
xiey, who 42^ I -v^^as employed to ^ive a few lectures before the Mechanics* 
Utooratory^ Charitable Association m Boston, and in my last lecture, which I 
at the time, think was in the month of February, I had occasion to show a 
t^^ °®J^^ number of experiments in illustration ef the theory of volcanic 
ti^fate the^^^P^^*^'^^? and for ray experiments I prepared a large quantity of 
ether dis- chlorine gas, collecting it in gallon glass jars over boiling water. 
cov€ry. Just as one of these large jars was filled with chlorine, it over- 
turned and broke, and, in my endeavors to save the vessel, 
[ 6 ] I accidentally got my lungs full of chlorine gas, whicli 
nearly suffocated me, so that my life was in imminent 



4U9 

dano-er. I immediately had ether and amiiioria brought to me, 
and alternately inhaled them with great relief. 

'*The next morning my throat was severely inflamed and very 
painful, and I perceived a distinct flavo^- of chlorine in my breath, 
and my lungs were still much oppressed. I determined, therefore,, 
to make a thorough trial of the ether vapor, and for that purpose 
went into my laboratory which adjoins my house in Somerset 
street, and made the experiment, from which the discovery of 
anaesthesia was deduced. I had a large supply of perfectly pure- 
washed sulphuric ether, which was prepared in the laboratory of JSTo proof 
my friend, Mr. John H. Blake, of Boston. I took a bottle of ^^^^^{{;'^^^^^^^ 
that ether and a folded towel, and seated myself in a rocking- natm-Sly ^ 
chair, placing my feet in another chair, so as to secure a fixed involves 
position as 1 reclined backward in the one in which I v/as seated, somefenow- 
Soaking the towel in the ether, I placed it over my nose and ^^^^^^^ ^ 
mouth, so as to inhale the ether mixed with the air. and began to 
inhale the vapor deeply into my lungs. At first the ether made 
me cough, but soon that irritability ceased, and I noticed a sense 
of coolness, followed by warmth, falHess oi the head and chest, 
with giddiness and exhilaration. Numbness of the ket and legs 
fellowed, and a swimming or floating sensation as if afloat in the 
air. This was accompanied with entire loss of feding, even of 
contact with the chair in which I was seated, i noticed that all 
poAn had ceased in my throat, and the sensations which I had 
were of the most agreeable kmd. Much pleased and excited, I 
continued the inhalation of the ether vapor, and soon fell into a 
dreamy state, and then became unconscious of ail surrounding 
things. I know not how long I remained in that state, but sup- 
pose it could not be less than a quarter of an hour, judging from 
the degree of dryness of the cloth, which, during this state of 
unconsciousness, had fallen from my mouth and nose and lay upon 
my breast. As I became conscious, I observed still there was no 
feeling of pain in my throat, and my limbs were still deeply be- 
numbed, as if the nerves of sensation were fully paralyzed. A 
strange thrilling now began to be felt along the spine, but it was 
not in any way disagreeable; little by little sensation began to 
manifest itself, first in the throat and body, and gradually ex- 
tended to the extremities, but it was some time before full sensa- 
tion returned, and my throat became really painful. 

'* Reflecting upon these phenomena, the idea flashed into my Pity that 
mind that I had made the discovery I had been for so long a time ^^}^ ^^^^ 
in quest of,— a means of rendering the nerves of sensation tempo- u^gii \^^ 
rariiy insensible to pain, so as to admit the performance of a sur- yond the 
ffical operation on an individual without his suffering pain there- san-ow ho- 
E.^»« 3? ^ ^ nzon 01 the 

^^""^* . thinker's 

Dr. Jackson explains the process of reasoning upon which he mind. Is 5t 

possible that he slept on it for iSve years, while the world was suffering ? If it "be true, what 
does he deeerve ? As to the inductions see the testimony of Townsend, J. M . Warren, 
Bigelow. 



500 

formed this induction, as follows : — " In the rapid inductions of 
the mind it is not always easy to trace the exact method of 
thought, by which we suddenly arrive at great truths ; but so far 
as I can trace the reasoning that rapidly flowed through my mind, 
it was upon principles well understood by all educated physicians 
and physiologists. 

*' I knew that the nerves of sensation were distinct from those 
of motion and of organic life, and that one system might be para- 
lyzed without necessarily and immediately affecting the others. 
I have seen often enough, in my medical practice, the nerves of 
sensation paralysed without those of motion being affected, and 
those of motion paralyzed without the ganglionic nerves or those 
of organic life being affected. 

'' I knew also that the nerves of sensation are stationed 

[ 7 ] as sentinels near the exterior of our bodies, to warn us of 

danger from external causes of injury ; and that there is no 

feeling in the internal portion of our bodies. I knew also that 

when the knife is applied in surgical operations, there is little sense 

Consider of pain in any parts beneath the skin. This my own surgical 

all tills, and experience, as well as that of others, had long ago demonstrated, 

^X^^f^ ., and the philosophy of these physiolog-ical facts was made known 

can possi- to the medical world m Ji.ngland and this country, by the re- 

biybetriie, searches of Sir Charles Bell, of England, and was fully proved by 

+^^.^*^^i*^t ^^^ eminent anatomists and physiologists on the continent of Europe. 

from man- " Now I had observed — 

Innd ? In- ^- 1st. That the nerves of sensation in my own body were rendered 
triasicaily, {usensible to pain for some time before unconsciousness took place. 
hie? Ifcre- "2d. That all pain had ceased in a suffering part of my body 
dible, what iluring the stages of etherization, preceding and following the un- 
elairii does conscious state. 

tlie^bount^ '^3d. That this state of insensibility of the nerves of sensation 
of Con- continued for a sufficient length of time to admit of most surgical 
gi'css, or operations, and I had reason to believe that, during the unconscious 
tude ^Ui^ period, the degree of insensibility ^vas still greater, so that it would 
world -^ " be impossible that any pain could be felt in a surgical operation. 
^' 4th. That the nerves of motion and of the involuntary func- 
tions of respiration and of circulation were in no wise affected ; 
the functions of life going on as usual, while the nerves of sensa- 
tion were, rendered devoid of feeling, and the body could suffer no 
pain. By long experience in the trial of ether vapor in spasmodic 
. asthma, and from numerous earefully-conducted physiological ex- 
periments, I had learned that the vapor of ether could be safely 
inhaled into the lungs to an extent before believed to be highly 
dangerous." 

' - • That the facts occurred and the deductions were made, as narra- 

■" : . ted ih Dr. Jackson^s statement above given, is proved by the 

testimony of eight witnesses, to w^hom he communicated the above 

facts, and announced his discovery of the anaesthetic effects of sul- 



501 

phuric ether, prior to September, 1846. This testimony is of the I^ tlim "be 
same character as is commonly introduced to establish priority of j^ckson 
invention in suits at law for infringement of patents. It is believed and his 8 
that it would establish the priority of invention or discovery in any witnesses 
court of law. The witnesses are all men of unimpeachable char- ^^^^^^^ |2 
acter ; most of them scientific or medical men, upon whom Dr. a row. Bat 
Jackson's statement must have made a strong impression, and who he neyer 
would be most likely to be distinct and definite in their recollec- *^°"^'^ ^^'"7^ 
tions. ^ cated tlicso 

The communications by Dr. Jackson, relative to his experiments thing^s t.> 
and discovery, prior to September, 1846, were made as follows : ^^y. V^^'^p^- 
In the winter of 1841-42, to George Darracott. temglfncr" 

In the spring of 1842, to John H. Blake. enongh to 

In the summer of 1842, to Wm. F. Channing. ^^^^*^ "^ 

In September, 1842, to S. A- Bemis. y^^^^.j. r^^^^^J._ 

In September, 1842, to George T. Dexter. wards. 

In 1842 or 1843, to Henry D. Fowle. ^'i«^out 

In November, 1845, to D. Jay Browne. f^^f ^^^l 

In February, 1846, to Joseph Peabody. prehending 

By the testimony of Mr. Darracott, now published for the first and acting 
time, we have the facts confirmed in relation to the accident from ^^f^^:!^ ^'^'" 
the inhalation of chlorine, and the inhajation of ether by Dr. Jack- value of tlie 
son to relieA^e his sufferings. This affidavit is as follows : ^rath coiu- 

"I, George Darracot% of Boston, in the county of Suf- muraoau^d. 

folk, agent of the Boston Gas Light Company, do under [ 8 J 
oath depose and say, that some years ago I called, in the 
morning, at the laboratory of Dr. Charles T. Jackson in Boston ; ^''[^ , ''"^ 
that in the Doctor's manner I perceived an unusual earnestness or p^Qsciipl 
excitement ; that in answer to my inquiry he said that lie came tioD_, pub- 
near killing himself from accidentally breathing some noxious gas- — l^^^J;^ JJ 
chlorine, I think it was — which he was preparing to use in a lee- is^^'wlioily 
ture ; that to rid himself of the feeling of suffocation he experienced, distinct 
he inhaled the vapor of sulphuric ether ; that, as the pain caused ^^'^}^^ . . '^^^^ 
by breathing this noxious gas recurred, he again inhaled the sul- gjjg^.|2a! ^ 
phuric ether, until he was completely relieved. The time of thistion. 
interview was some years before any publication about etherization 
in the newspapers in Boston. 

(Signed,) GEORGE DARRACOTT." 

Mr. John H. Blake, a practical and scientific chemist of Boston, 
in his letter of April 27, 1848, in replying to certain inquiries from 
Dr. Jackson, says : 

"I distinctly remember the substance of the conversation which 
passed between us, in the spring of eighteen hundred and forty- 
two, concerning sulphuric ether. The conversation took place at 
your office, where I was passing the evening. Observing that 
you was suffering from severe pain in the head, 1 was about to 
take leave, when you requested me not to do so, remarking that 



This, if in ten or fifteen minutes jou would probably be free from pain, I 
mere ^sag- i*eplied : * Were I subject to attacks so severe, and of such short 
gestion duration, I should inhale nitrous oxide.' My remark was not 
that stupe- intended to be understood seriously. You answered : ' Some of 
wouUl^ en- y^^^ sulphuric ether would be much better ; and added, ' Are you 
sue, as aware that, when inhaled, it produces complete insensibility ? ' — 
from lauda- or words to this elfect, 

an'T' ^'k' "^ '^''^''^^ aware of this fact : but^ at the time, my impression was, 
the above, that either nitrous oxide or the vapor of ether, inhaled frequently, 
does not would be attended with evil consequences, if not fatal, 
touch the a 'p|^g ether to which you referred was some which I had pre- 
pared for use in my private laboratory. It was pure sulphuric 
ether, and very different from the sulphuric ether of the shops — such 
as was then only to be found in the market.'' 

Dr. William F. Channing, of Boston, a Fellow of the Ameri- 
can Academy of Arts and Sciences, author of several works on 
Electricity and Magnetism, and lately distinguished as the inven- 
tor of the celebrated Telegraohic Fire Alarms, in his affidavit of 
May 12, 1848, he says : 

This is i( In the month of March, in the 3'ear eighteen hundred and forty- 
fore'3'oino-.^ six, I accidentally inhaled chlorine in thelaboratory of Dr. Charles 
"^ ° T. Jackson, of Boston, The effect was to produce spasms of 
the chest and distress Oi respiration, of such a character as to 
make me apprehend an immediately fatal result. I at once inhaled 
the vapor of ammonia and alcohol from the mouth of the vessels 
containing the same, for the purpose of neutralizing the chlorine, 
but found very shght relief, I also swallov^^ed somie brandy, 
which gave momentary, but no permanent relief. Dr. Jackson, 
w^ho had then returned to his office, advised me to try the inhala- 
tion of sulphuric (hydric) ether, which he stated that he had himself 

used with success in an accident of the same kind, and he 
[ 9 ] directed its application by means of a handkerchief. The 

inhalation of the ether produced an immediate suspension 
of the spasms, with entire relief from the distress. They recurred 
again, after a time, with less violence, but were subsequently en 
tirely removed by occasional inhalations of ether ; so that, in about 
one hour after the accident, I was enabled to walk from the labora- 
tory without difficulty. 

" Several days after, inflammation of the lungs resulted from the 
irritation of the chlorine, connected with exposure to cold. In 
consequence of the great relief produced in my own case by the 
inhalation of ether, I recommended it, shortly after my recovery, 
to be used as a remedy in ordinary cases of spasms of the chest. 
"I have heard Dr. Jackson speak on several occasions of the 
inhalation of sulphuric (hydric) ether, for producing insensibility 
to pain during operations of a surgical natm-e. These conversa- 
tions Avith Dr. Jackson took place, according to my recolleetioD, 



certciinly more than a year and a half ago ; and my own impres- This, if 
sieji is very strong that the earliest communication on this subject ^^^^^^ ^g^g^ 
took place during the summer or autumn of 1842, while I was gestion, or 
acting' as assistant with Dr. Jackson on the geological survey of ^speculation 
the State of New Hampshire.'*' ^ wouM^'^ot 

Dr. S. A. Berais, one of the oldest and most respectable dentists even in 
in Boston, deposes as follows : strict law 

"On or about the twenty-ninth day of September, in the year \^J^^^^^^*^ * 
eighteen hundred and forty- two, I was residing as a boarder at But^^ in a 
Ihe Mount Crawford House, at Hart's Location, in the county of question of 
Coos, and State of Nev\- Hampshire. On or about the said ^^^?J^^^^^' 
twenty-ninth day of September, Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Bos- ^Jp "^^^j! 
ton, being at that time engaged in a geological survey of New^ for an ac- 
Hampshire, stopped at the said Mount Crawford House. *^f 1^^^^*!' 

" Dr. Jackson had, for some years prior to the above date, isnotldvg' 
been an acquaintance of mine. During some conversation that 
occurred between Dr. Jackson aad myself, at the time and place 
above raentioned, and in presence of several other gentlemen, 
among them Dr. William F. Channing, of Boston, then an assist- 
ant of Dr. Jackson, various rv<^marks were made respecting my 
own profession ; and the subject of pain and painful operations 
was introduced by Dr. Jackson, as being incident to its practice. 
Dr. Jackson then remarked, that it was his wish to alleviate or 
destroy all sensation of pain and suffering during operations of a 
surgical nature, and asserted that this result would be secured by 
the introduction of a new mode of practice in such operations. 
After making several observations upon the importance of some 
new treatment or agent which would prevent all consciousness of 
pain, Dr. Jackson said that, if I desired it, he would give or pro- 
vide me with something which he knew would effect that object, 
and also proposed to me to introduce the same into my profession. 
I have no doubt, whatever, that the plan communicated to me at How is it 
the time was the same, in regard to the substance to be used, viz: possible, if 
sulphuric ether, and in all other respects, as he has since promul- j^^^^e ^l^a^jj 
gated to the world. Dr. Jackson also remarked, that he had mere spe- 
heen induced to try its eifect upon himself, when suffering in con- c^Jj^^i^^ 
sequence of some accident, and that he had been completely sue- ^^^^ ^-^^ 
cessful in its application, I had no doubt, at the time, that Dr. witness 
Jackson regarded the successful application of the new agent, should not 
above referred to, to the purposes above mentioned, as not only ^^^^' ^^^^ 
practicable, but quite within the grasp of the scientific operator ; burnt upon 
and I expected to meet with an account of it at some future day his memo- 
through the scientific journals." ^^* 

The following statement of Dr. George T. Dexter, now 
a practising physician in the city of New York, which [ 10 ] 
has not been before publishedj proves the most precise 
and distinct announcement of this discovery by Dr. Jackson, to 
him and others, ajid fixes the time when Dr. Jackson made a 
similar communication to Dr. Channing : 



504 

" New York, Bee. 9, 1851. 
"Dr. Chas. T.Jackson — Dear Sir: Inreply to your request, I most 
cheerfully communicate to you what I kno%v concerning your dis- 
covery of a means of preventing ail sensation of pain in surgical opera- 
tions, by administration of 'ether vapor,' by pulmonary inhalation. 
''I distinctly remember that; while you where engaged in the 
geological survey of the State of New Hampshire, m 1842. and 
while you were exploring the vicinity of Lancaster, N. H., at 
T^u i\'^^ which place I was at that time practising the profession of medi- 
tinct ^from ^^^^^ J^^ communicated to me the properties of strong chloric 
the princi- ether, or alcoholic solution of chloroform, as the means of arrest- 
pie o^ing the pain of a decayed tooth; I successfully employed it at 

t^on."^^" ^^^^ ^^^^ ^y y^^^ advice, you furnishing me with the article em- 
ployed. I remember, w^hen conversing with you, that you also 
If this stated that you had made another and more important discovery^ 
5!^-l^n ^fi namely, the production of entire insensibility to pain and uncon- 
valueless sciousness, by the mhalation mto the iungs oi pure sulphuric ether 
specula- vapor : and you then stated how you made the discovery, and 
tion. If a (declared it to be a safe and efhcient means of preventisc: all sen- 



had 



thought 50 sations of pain in all surgical operations, 
years be- *' You spoke freely, earnestly and confidently of the discovery 
t^^^ "tir^t ^^ ^ means of alleviating much human suffering. All this time 
steam Y^^ "^^^^ vfiih. me in my carriage to the town of Whitefield, for 
might be the purpose of examhiing the farm of Mr. Bray, and were em- 
used _foi' ployed most of the time during our ride in 2:ivin^ me an account 
navigation, ^ f> f^ • . • x ^ v 

vvkat effect ^^ ^^^^ most important discovery. 

would this " You remained at Lancaster several days, daring v/hich time you 
fact hare were sent for in consultation with myself by Gen. L-a Young, who 
Fultoi?s^'^ was suffering from a diseased spine, accompanied with much pain;: 
merit? and I distinctly recollect your suggesting the employment of this 
agent (ether) as the most eifectual means of constraining the parcx- 
This acrain J^^^^ of pain, and also giving the General an account of the discovery. 
is wholly ''During the winter of 1842, I visited Boston, and called upon 
distinct you at your laboratory, and then asked you what progress you 

from the j^ I made with your discovery. You replied that you had con- 
pnnciple of . , ^ . ^ -.•> • ^ ^ .- . -. ii 

etheriza- tmued your experiments, and were satisnea tliat it would prove- 

tion. all, if not more, than you expected. 

" I have communicated my knovv ledge of these facts to several 

Does this 0^ my friends, some time since, and am happy to have it in my 

witness powder to reply to your letter of inquiry, by stating these facts, 

mean to w];^i(.}i occurred at a time that must satisfy any disinterested per- 
avow that , • i i • •. x- i • ^^^ ' -^ t 

he had this SOU you have, indeed, priority oi claim as vrell as merit. 1 am. 
boon to residing now in this city, w^here I am practising my profession, 
l^^^^^ity. and shall be happy to hear from you at any time. I omitted to- 
Ms'^breasT ^^y that the manner of administering the ether was by a sponge 
there to re- or handkerchief, aud also that Dr. V/illiam Channing was travel- 
main for- Ymg with you as your assistant in the survey. 
Ilf' 5ji* "I am, sincerely, your friend, 

Morton^ * ''GEO. T. DEXTER/' 



505 

The following deposition of Henry D. Fowle, one of the 
most respectable druggists of the city of Boston, fully [ 11 ] 
proves that Dr. Jackson had discovered the anaesthetic 
properties of ether as early, at least, as the spring of 1843 : 

" I, Henry D. Fowle, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and Local ap-- 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, apothecary, depose and say, ^^J^^^^^J.*^ 
that my place of business was, in the years 1841 and 1842, in tinct from 
Green street, in Boston, and near the house then occupied by Dr. the discov- 
Charles T. Jackson, and that I was in the habit of calling occa- ®^* 
sionally at his (Dr. Jackson's) laboratory. At one of my calls, in 
the year 1841, he gave me a phial containing a very strong solu- 
tion of chloric ether, prepared by himself, which, if applied to a 
diseased tooth, he told me Avas a sure remedy for some kinds of 
toothache, and which I afterwards used as such with entire success. 
Some time after Dr. Jackson removed to Somerset street — I think 
in the year 1842 — certainly not later than the spring of the year 
1843, I called upon him at his house. At this, my first visit at 
his new residence, I had a long conversation with him, partly in 
his house and partly at his laboratory, situated near his house. In See Ed- 
this conversation the chloric ether he had formerly given me for tm;? ' "did 
the relief of the toothache w^as referred to, and Dr. Jackson then not convey 
spoke of some other form or kind of ether, different from chloric*^ ^r- J;^ 
ether, the inhalation of which, he said, would throw a person into^j^^^ a Va- 
a state of unconsciousness, and render him totally insensible to tient ^couhi 
pain. Dr. Jackson further stated to me that he had made this ^« /^"f /^^'^'^-''^ 
discovery when suffering from an accidental inhalation of chlorine, ifj''-^^"^"/^ 
which caused him great distress: that he then inhaled this other pain.' 
kind of ether, which produced entire insensibility, and greatly re- 
lieved him. Dr. Jackson thereupon showed me a phial containing 
some pure ether, which he stated would produce the effects above 
described. I asked him if it was chloric ether. He rephed in the 
negative, and stated that chloric ether could not be inhaled for 
the purpose of destroying pain, as it contained too much alcohol. 

"Dr. Jackson further said to me, that he intended, at some fu-^^^^^^ ^^^^ 
ture time, to make more experiments with this ethereal vapor, proof ne- 
and to subject its power to destroy the pain of surgical operations cessary to 
to a practical test ; but that his attention was then so completely f^^^^ *^^^- 
engrossed by the work connected with his geological surveys, that entertaSe^d 
he had no leisure for any other researches. Dr. Jackson added the idea it 
in words to the following effect : ' If you will come to me some ^^^^ ^ ^^^ro 
time hence, and inhale this ethereal vapor, you can have a tooth speculftion 
extracted or a limb cut off without pain, and without knowing any- ^ 
thing about it.' His declaration appeared to me so extravagant and ^^ , .i . 
strange, that, at first, I thought he could not be in earnest ; on find- Majority ^^ 
ing, however, that he spoke seriously, and actually meant what he Report on 
said, the wonderful nature of the declaration, together with the air ^^jy^l^.i^ct 
of confidence and sincerity with which he spoke, made an impres- ^neged inl 
sion on my mind which I can never forget. I then urged Dr. Jack- ductions & 



J0\ 



specula- son to keep this discovery to iiimself, for it would prove a fortune 
as^to the*^ ^^^^ ' '^^^ warned him that, if he communicated it t® others as 
testimony fi'eely as to myself, it ^vould be stolen from him. 
of witness- " Subsequently, in the year 1846, and before the 30th of Sep- 
^^^^^^^"^^''"^ tember of that year. Dr. Jackson called at my shop, on Prince 
Dr, Jack- street, being on his way to J. H. Blake's (chemist) office, on Ben- 
son liimself net street. At this interview I referred to the aforesaid discovery 
in i^i^s letter j^^ had communicated to me. Dr. Jackson then again spoke with 
Humboldt, perfect confidence of the power of the ethereal vapor to destroy 
stating lii.sthe pain of surgical operations. He also stated that he had been 
f ^-* -w^^^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ much engaged to make further experiments 
(it is pre- with this nevv' agent, and he was then about to be absent from the 
sumed) re- _ city for some time, but that if I would call at his laboratory 

ih-iT h^f [ -^^ ] s°^^ ^'^^^ during the following winter, he would show me 
lie calls an ^^^ effects. On another occasion. Dr. Jackson asked me if 

indifcnon I would conscnt to be his patient, and allow him to make trial of 
J^^^j^^^^- the ether upon myself I had previously inhaled various gases 
etbl? on ^^ ^^s laboratory on Green street, and he said that the ether vapor 
himself in would produce very different effects from either of them, 
an alleged a J cannot now state, from recollection, that Dr. Jackson, at 
meS^And ^^'^her of the interviews heretofore alluded to in this deposition, 
this so- specified the particular kind of ether he had in view for prevent- 
calied in- i^g the pain of surgical operations ; but I have no doubt whatever 
sel?^'" re- ^^ ^^'^^ sulphuric ether. I am certain it was not chloric ether. 
mair.e'J nu- '^ I have never had any conversation with Dr. Jackson respect- 
der a sort ing the ^ ether controv^ersy,' except at a very brief casual interview 
iLn— Sd^^^ State street, in the last week of December, 1848. 
to all the "Early in the spring of the year 1847, 1 called upon Dr. Jack- 
word— till son to ask him if the ether with which Dr. Morton was operating 
?^;. ^^,?^"was prepared by him, (Dr. Jackson.) I was then intending, if 
coverv four such should prove to be the fact, to have two teeth extracted by 
years after. Dr. Morton, and to inhale the vapor. Dr. Jackson then advised 
^^ ^^^^"^^me that Dr. Morton w^as not a safe or judicious person to admin- 
it, c\"en if it ^^t^r the ether. Dr. Jackson expressed entire confidence in its 
existed as a safety and elHcacy, but, on account of the irritable state of my 
specuUtion jnn^s, he thought I had better not inhale it. 
^;Ja "HE>^RYD.FOWLE.- 

does he de^ 

serve for <^ SuFFOLK, ) 

%,, .,, February 4, 1849, ] ''' 

such imluc- '^ Then personally appeared Henry D. Fowls, hereinbefore named, 
tion was and made oath that the foregoing statements, by him signed, are true. 
STifid ra- "Before me, "CHARLES E. ALLEN, 

tionaiiy he ^'Justice of the Peace.^^ 

made, from the facts stated by Dr. J., if true, as stated, and was of no value if made. See 
the. exaTiiination of eminent physicians and surgeons in Boston, before the U. S. Commis- 
sioner, in the presence of Dr. J. 'a counsel, viz: Dr. Towngend, p. 355; Dr. Bigelow, p. 
519; Dr. Warren, p. 301; Dr. J. M. Warren, p. 386; Dr. Gould, p. 265; Dr. Peirson, p. 
45!). See also Curtis on Patents, sec. 48j &c. 



507 

The following unpublished letter is from Mr. D. Jay Browne, 
of the city of New York, well known as a scientific and acrriciil- 
tiirai writer, and author of an excellent work on x4_merican Forest 
Trees : 

'^New York, Dexemher 19, 1851. 

" Dear Sir : In reply to your note of the 6th, requesting rae 
to communicate in writing what I know concerning your discovery 
of a means of preventing the pains incident to surgical operations, 
anterior to the year 1S46, 1 would state, that I have examined my 
diary, and lind that, while I was engaged as engineer in locating 
the Northern railroad in New Hampshire, in November, 1845, 
I called at your laboratory in Somerset street, Boston. 

"You had recently returned from a mining survey on the shores 
of Lake Superior, and told me of some of the important discoveries 
you had made there of copper, silver, and iron mines. I had ^ ^, . . 
long conversation with you in regard to the importance of your i;,ave^^^^ 
jpv.hlishin^ your valuable researches, which, I fear, you are too amounted 
much in the habit of delaying. I had particular reference to your to nothing 
chemical researches in relation to agriculture. You made y^^f barren"^^^^ 
lisual excuses for your neglect, saying that you wished to review speculation 
them before you gave them to the public, as you had several other See ante. 
discoveries te publish at some future time, which you in- g ^xo^^- 

tended to make iiQQ to the world. You then communica- [ 13 ] examina- 
ted to me, as one of the most important discoveries you tionsofsur- 

had ever made, the means of paralyzing the nerves of sensation p^^^^j ^-^ 
by the administration of ethereal vapor by inhalation into the lungs, jackson, 
and spoke with great enthusiasm and earnestness of the importance before the 
of this discovery in surgery, stating that the means proposed by you commis- 
was both efficient and safe, and would prevent any sensation of pain, Boston 
even in the most severe surgical operations. The application of where, with 
this means of preventing pain in our domestic animals, which re- ^ ^^^Y., ^^ 
quire difficult surgical operations in veterinary art, struck me as jjjl^^^ ^^j.^ 
of importance to farmers and others interested in their breeding Morton's 
and management ; and that part of your conversation which re- statement 
lated to the treatment of anim.als is most strongly impressed upon experiment 
my memory, on account of the interest I had taken for so many on his dog, 
years in all subjects connected with agriculture, or the operations he takes 
ofnatureofanykind. ^ Ihat^'Te 

" I remember, very distinctly, how graphically you described effect on 
the manner in which you made this discovery, which arose from quadrupeds 
an accident* that happened 1o you while hastily preparing some 1^ disas- 
chlorine gas for one of your lectures. You spoke of this discov- j^, would 
ery as one made by you several years before, and as the most im- seem ti© 
portant you had ever made. You confided it to me as one of '"^'^^® ^^ 
your former pupils, and I strictly held it sacred and never di- ^le'to farm- 
vulged the secret before it was made public by yourself, the next ers,&c. 

"^ See aL-JO the exarnioation of J- D. Whitney, Esq., hofore the U. S. Commissioner, "Webb. 
Mr. Wliitaey was Dr. J.'« assistant in his laboratory at the time fixed by Dr. J. for tie oc- 
currence of tho accident, and boarded in his house. He heard nothing of it. 



508 

year, when, on the occasion of a dispute about priority of dis- 
covery, I deemed it my duty to you to speak of it freely to my 
friends, and by this means it eame to your knowledge that I bad 
retained in my memory the facts I now communicate to you in 
wTitiiig, as I did to you orally during your late visit to this city. 
You asked me what name gou gave to the agent employed by 
you at the time you made your communication to me in 184o ; 
you then called it hydric ether, which I understood to be sulphu- 
ric ether that has been washed by water, for the purpose of re- 
moving any alcohol or acids contained in it. I had long since 
supposed that ail dispute about priority of discovery of anaesthe- 
sia by ether had been settled in your favor, or I should have im- 
Witness parted to you this information sooner. Here, no serious doubts 




w »vixvy ^ii^Tv. liti^i u.ii opportunity 
^*y* examining the evidence of the case. 

^' RespectfuUv, I am your friend, &c., 

"D. JAYEROWNE. 

•'Dr. C, T. Jackson, Boston.'^ 

'^Sioiied in mv presence, this 19th day of December. 1851. 
'^ ADONIRAM* CHANDLER, 

" Cor. Sec. of the Am. Institute*' ' 

Dr. Jackson communicated his discovery to Mr. Joseph Pea- 
bo{{y, in February, 1846. Mr. Peabody, after having graduated 
at Harvard University, was at that tlmt:: a student in chemistry 
in Dr. Jackson's laboratory. He is at present a student at the 
School of Mines of France. He narrates the circumstances un- 
der which the communication was made to him, as follovrs : 

'-' I was suffering from a severe toothache ; and, intending to 
have two teeth extracted, a fellovz-student urged me to try the 
power of mesmerism to elTect insensibility to pain, offering to at- 
:;ri!^ ^'P'^ tempt to produce the mao-netic state. I consented, and he 

xen specu- L ^"^ J commenced the experiment. v\ hile we were tnus en- 
latioa^ if g"g^*^? ^^' Jackson came into the office, and remarked 

^iie as he a.^^f j;. ,^,^j^g .^^ ]q^^ ^^ |--j^g ^^^ labor to attempt to repeat the ex- 

. ' ' periments of the mesmerizers, for their insensibility was only a 
pretence. ^ if you want to have your teeth extracted without 
pain,' said he, ' I have mesmerism bottled up in the other room — 
in the shape of sulphuric ether.' He then repeated to me mi- 
nutely the effects which would be produced by the inhalation of 
sulphuric ether. I asked him where he got his information from. 
He srdd that he had tried it on himself ; that, about four years 
before, he inhaled it freely, with the view of ascertaining the ef- 
fects of its vapor on the system, and was astonished to find it 
produced an entire loss of consciousness ; that this state speedily 



509 

passed away, without leaving any unpleasant effects. He said 
that subsequently, while engaged in preparing some chemical ex- 
periments, he accidentally got his lungs full of chl@rine, which 
produced a sudden irritation and severe distress ; that, hoping to 
obtain relief, he applied sulphuric ether ; that he breathed the 
vapor copiously — having poured the ether upon a cloth which 
was laid over his mouth. He soon became unconscious and per- 
fectly free from pain, although the trouble in his lung? returned 
when the effects of the ether had wholly passed off- He urged 
me to apply the ether when I wished to have my teeth extracted, 
assuring me of his confidence that I would escape the pain of the 
operation. He added that ether prepared expressly for the pur- 
pose, and freed from its alcohol, would ensure success. I imme- 
diately determined to make the trial; and as I was obliged to 
return to Salem, I there commenced to re-distil some ether with 
sulphuric acid. 

'* In the mean time I consulted several ckemical and medical 
works (in a large scientific library to which I had access,) in re- 
lation to the effects of sulphuric ether ; and found that all the 
authorities stated that the action of ether upon the system Viras So that 
injurious, and warned against its use. My father was also averse ^^^ ^^^ 
to my breathing it. I therefore concluded that the operation pro- hody ven- 
posed would not be sufficiently serious to warrant me in using any t^red to act 
application pronounced dangerous by high authorities. Upon my ^^^^ ^^' 
return to Dr. Jackson's laboratory, I stated to him the opinion of latiou. 
chemical and medical writers in relation to the use of ether. He 
said that he w^as aware of the opinions in the works upon the sub- 
ject ; but, notwithstanding their views, he was satisfied that he 
was right — that the application of ether would be perfectly harm- 
less, and its effects would be what he had stated, 

" This was not the only occasion on which the subject of the 
effects of ether was mtroduced. He alluded to it in several sub- 
sequent conversations, and always with the same confidence, so 
that, w^hen I learned the finai success of the application, I was 
not at all surprised." 

The evidence above presented furnishes the strongest proof that 
Dr. Jackson's statements, in regard to his experiments and induc- 
tions relative to sulphuric ether, are true. It is admitted by the 
majority report, that "these statements, if true, prove that this 
disco '^^ery, so far as private experiment and philosophical deduc- 
tion could go, V7as as full and complete in 1842 as it was on the 
morning of October 1, 1846, after Dr. M'orton's successful oper- 
ation on Eben Frost." The undersigned considers it estabhshed 
by this evidence that the discovery, to the full extent to which it 
has been defined in the first four propositions presented on pages 
4 and 5, was complete in the mind of Dr. Jackson previous' to 



510 

March, lfe46, before Mr. Morton claims to have made any exper 
iments with saiphuric ether. 

The Yvitnesses above named have never been impeached 
[ 15 ] or contradicted. The only answer which the opponents 
of Dr. Jackson have given to this evidence, is, that Dr. 
Jackson's conduct was inconsistent with his possession of this 
great discover)'. It is urged that, if his statements were true, he 
would have hastened to verity his discovery : that he would have 
at once announced it to the would. The majority report demands. 
^•if this statement be truC; how it happens that no contemporary 
written paper, no private memorandum is exhibited." These ob- 
jections can be easily answered. 

e. g., tiie -Q^^ Jackson's conduct in this matter was perfectly consistent 
aiscoTerv , . , . . i. 

by him'oi^'^tn nis coiii'se in relation to ms other aiscovenes. 

Professor ]SIr. Haves, Dr. Jackson's counsel^ in his argument before the 
Morses committee, remarked: '*^Dr. Jackson's friends have often remon- 
See Amos strated with him against his procrastination in publishing his dis- 
Kendall-s coveries. The publication of some of his most important dis- 
pamphlet. coveries, as, for instance, that of the presence of chlorine in 
meteoric iron, was delayed for four years.* One of his most 
impoitant scientific labors has been his researches on gastric juice. 
The results of his observations were communicated to individual 
physicians." Dr. Jeffries, of Boston, m an address dehvered be- 
fore the Suffolk District Medical Society, thus speaks of them : 
" Let us remember with greatful pleasure that one of our own 
number, Charles T. Jackson. M. D., upon whom has been con- 
ferred the highest honor that can be conferred from abroad, did, 
in a series of experiments on gastric juice, so long ago as in the 
year 1S34, go far to show the chemical affinities of vital action." 
These researches have not been published by Dr. Jackson, to this 
day. The objection that Dr. Jackson could not have made the 
induction at the tiD;ie he claims, because he was not more prompt 
in announcing it to the world, has no weight against the positive 
testimony that he did make this induction a long time before he 
monT ^i^ communicated it to Mr. Morton. In the language of Mr. J. H. 
clear tliat Abbot, '^The objection, if admitted to be valid, would be sub- 
Dr. Morton yersive, in not a few cases, of the most clearly established rights 

nad already q£ discovery. Harvev did not announce to the world his ^reat 

tne same . .• . ►- - • i i i it 

idea; ori- discovery till twelve years alter it had been made. It Wcis more 

ginally, and than a quarter of a century after Jenner had conceived the idea 

jr ^^^n- °^ vaccination, and sixteen after his friend John Hunter was ac- 

gaged in customed to allude to his views, in ins lecture room in London, 

TerifviDgit. before he made the direct application of vaccine matter in the 

manner which is now common. It is well known that Newton 

* Dr. Jackson, as it appears from Sillirnan's Journal of Sciecee. discovered 
chlorine in meteoric iron in 1834, and pnblished no account of his discorery till 
the year 1838. Other similar facts might be added. 



511 

forbore to publish most of his great discoveries for many years^ 
after they were made. 

'• The same cautiousness in regard to the publication of his dis- 
coveries, characterized Wollaston, in a remarkable degree, as it 
has many other minds of. the highest order. Much of this same 
cautiousness is known to belong to Dr. Jackson, and hence the 
confidence with which his discoveries are received in Europe at 
their first announcement.*' 

The question is not whether other men would have conducted 
as Dr. Jackson did, in delaying his experiments and public an- 
nouncement of his discovery, but, whether Dr. Jackson's course 
was consistent with his givu character and habits. Dr. Jackson's 
most intimate scientific friends have always spoken of his conduct 
in this matter as precisely what they should have expected of 
him. Dr. Bell, one of Dr. Jackson's intimate friends, says : **One 
of the great stumbling" blocks in the minds of those who knov/ 
nothing of the peculiar mental constitution of certain meir- of in- 
genuity and science,- — the circumstance that Dr. Jackson, 
if conscious of such a mighty discovery, did not make a [ 16 ] 
great bruit ai;out it, — was perfectly explained in the minds 
of all of us ¥ydio intimately knew him and his modes of thinking and 
action ; Ave feel that w^hat he did, was precisely w^hat a priori we 
should have expected him to do. Indeed, I have often spoken of 
his course, in the early days of this discovery, as exactly analogous 
to his course of action in relation to certain valuable discoveries of 
his, in the geological surveys of Maine and New Hampshire." 

Mr. D. Jay Browne was remonstrating with Dr. Jackson against 
his habit of delay in publishing his researches, when Dr. Jackson, 
after excusing liimself for his neglect by saying that he wished to 
review his researches before giving them to the public, referred to 
this very discovery of anaesthesia, which he intended, at some 
future time, to make free to the world. 

Dr. Jackson, in fact, had other and sufficient excuses for not See cvl- 

extendinpj his experiments of verification. He had already veri- ?,*^^^® . ^^ 
r J 1 • ?• I,- ir • ^ T :i ^ i^® Boston 

tied his discovery upon hunseli ; — experiments were needed only surgeons &^ 

to satisfy the world. He had no facilities for making these ex- to this pre- 

periments ; he had wholly retired from the practice of medicine *^°?®^ 

and surgery. He, therefore, had access to no subjects for ex- ^cited in 

periment. Me naturally shrunk from going to the hospitals, note p. 

where the chemists are regarded with distrust and jealousy by the ^^j") 

surgeons, and where, as events have shown, the largest honor of without any 

successful experiment would have been claimed by the verifiers, foundation 

Moreover, during the whole period, from 1841 to 1846, Dr. Jack- jj^ *^« ^^i- 

son was overwhelmed with other pressing duties. From 1840 to jg^iJi^tse^a 

1844, he was engaged in the geological survey of New Hamp- libel upon 

shire. During eight months of each year he was in the field. ^?e institu- 

The four months spent in his laboratory, were devoted to chemi- ^J°*,j *^ 

cal researches connected with the survey. The extent of his refers. 



512 

Is this a labors will be seen by referring to the large quarto volume con- 
the'^'^test^ taining his report on the geology of New Hampshire, a volume 
mony? if containing the most valuable original contributions to agricultural 
so, where chemistry that have ever appeared in this country. Before this 
d *^^ hJe ^^PO^^ ^^^ printed, he was called to make geological explorations 
referred to? on Lake Superior. During the years 1844 and 1845, and part of 
1846, he was actively engaged in the explorations in that district, 
and the metallurgical researches connected therewith, which 
brought to light the valuable copper mines of Kewenaw Point.* 
Again it is But there was another and higher reason why Dr. Jackson did 
enquired, ^qj- abandon all other duties to devote himself to experiments of 
port orTt^e verification. During this whole period, he was constantly dis- 
evid&ace? covering and developing new truths in science. It is the law of 
or a parti- Providence that those rare minds which are capable of discover- 
um of *Dr' ^^S truth, do not measure the value of their discoveries by prac- 
Jackson? tical standards. Their province is discovery, not application. 
As the search for each new truth effaces from the mind the thoughts 
of the last discovery, they are kept to their higher work by that 
benign arrangement which thus provides for the extension of 
knowledge among men. Such men strike the sparks and kindle 
the fires w^hich common men can feel and tend. The objections 
now answered could only come from those who cannot appreciate 
the man of genius, and who cannot imagine that a philosopher 
It is diffi- should have strong confidence in deductions from his own reason- 
cult to con- ^^ j ings and limited experiments, as in truths which had re- 
aUo'^eth'er ceived the most extended demonstration and verification, 
above com- At the commencement of this controversy,! and for several 
mon minds nionths after it began, Mr. Morton, his professional advisers and 
ciate'^'^su^cli advocates, rested his claim to this discovery solely upon the ground 
a man of of his performance of an experiment of verification, although it 
genius as was devised and committed to him by Dr. Jackson. Dr. Jacob Bige- 
sfribed ^^' ^^^^^^ admits that Dr. Jackson ^' made partial experiments and re- 
i'cou-stantlT/ commcnded, but did not make, decisive ones." Mr. N. I. Bowditch, 
discovering the most zcalous and prominent advocate of Mr. Morton, in his 
and de- j^gport to the Massachusetts General Hospital, arg-ues in substance 
oievj tniths that the act of first administering ether to a patient, though under 
i?i science," Dr. Jacksou's iustructions, and on Dr. Jackson's expressly assumed 
and whirled j.ggpQj3gjl3J]j^y constituted Mr. Morton the discoverer of etheriza- 
along his -^ " ' 
luminous 



wav so ra- 



pidly that * " "^^^ peninsula of Kewenaw Point has been known for some years to con- 
he cannot ^^^° important mines of native copper, which have been explored with care by 
hold him- ™^^y American geologists, and particularly by Dr. Charles T. Jackson, well 
self lone ^^^^""^ ^y ^"^ labors upon the geology of many parts of North America, and 
enouffh to ^^^^ celebrated still on account of his important discovery of etherization.'' — 
give the -^^^^ ^^ Beaumont, Systemes des Montagnts, torn, ii., page 702. Paris, 1852. 
world such a blessing as this discovery of etherization. 

t This is wholly without foundation. See Morton's letter to Wells, p. 124. See his ad- 
vertisementa and see the testimony. 



513 

tion. He says: "He [Mr. Morton] administered suphuric ether to a ^^^ ^^ ^^ 
patient. By so doing he made the discovery." Dr. H. J. Bigelow J^^^ ^}^^^^ 
says: — "He who verifies the suggestion is the true discoverer." not,) see 

If anything can be established by human testimony, it is proved Curtis on 
that Dr. Jackson, on and before the 30th day of September, 1846,* ^^^'^fj] ^g^ 
had clearly and fully formed the induction that the nerves of sen- and apply 
sation could be paralyzed by the inhalation of pure sulphuric these to the 
ether, to SQch an extent, that the severest surgical operations ^^^^^^^ ^^ 
could be performed without causing pain- and that he had devised wightman, 
the means of applying it with perfect safety to the patient. Metcalf, 

By all the principles recognized among scientific men, the dis- 2^^^?^®^'' 
€overy was made when the induction was complete in the mind '' 
of Dr. Jackson, and nothing remained to be done but to subject * See note 
it to the test of actual experiment. JVo experiments of verijica- "''^^'^■>^'^^^ 
Hon performed hy another, can take the right to a discovery from 
Mm loho first formed the induction^ and prescribed the means of 
verifying it. 

The doctrine which has been so earnestly asserted in behalf of See last 
Mr. Morton,t that verification experiments constitute the discovery, ^^^^* 
lias been repeatedly urged in other cases, and as often repudiated | There is 
by the scientific world. A few cases may be referred to which great care 
are directly in point. Franklin observed| that the form of the observable 
electric spark discharged from the prime conductor of an electric tid^^fepo^t 
machine, was like chain lightning. He observed that bodies struck to call Dr. 
by lightning were afif'ected very much like those through which Morton 
an electric spark was passed, and he made a series of experiments thoiigh his 
with the electric machine, in order still further to expose the rela- diploma as 
tions of lightning and electricity. He suspended flocks of cotton J^-I^- was 
from the prime conductor, and observed that when the conductor b^efo7e the 
was charged, the cotton stretched downward towards the table, committee. 
He placed a needle-point below, when the electricity was drawn 
off from the cotton, and it was drawn back to the conducto4\ ^ i'®" 
Soon the conductor itself was discharged silently of its electricity, happy state 
so that it would give no spark so long as the needle w^as beneath of mind ex- 
it. He moreover observed a star of light upon the needle-point ^'^^'^J^S ^* 
so long as it was beneath the electrified conductor. Now, from erect 'or! 
these premises, and comparatively few and trivial experiments, Jackson's 
Franklin boldly declared his conviction that lightning and elec- ?^'^^^l^^l 
tricity are identical; and, still more, he said that, if a pointed ^"^(J^gq^^^lj, 
rod, connected with the earth, were erected towards a thunder ty with 
eloudj it would silently draw ofif its electricity, and prevent a Franklin's, 
shock. Notwithstanding the loss of life and property to be any^^anab- 
averted by his discovery, he did not hasten to erect the conduc- gy. The 

tors which were harmlessly to snatch the thunderbolts from the ^'^^^^'^^g"- 

ment liere 
proceeds on the supposed truth that Morton was the mere instrument of Jackson, and 
that Jackson used him to execute his prescription : whereas, it is clearly proven by many 
•witnesses that Morton had for months before devoted hhnself to the verification of this idea 
originally conceived by himself; and Mr. Chandler's evidence p. 258, is clear that Jackson 
first claimed only to have said to Morton, "way don't you try ether," which Morton was 
already experimenting with. 

33 



514 

heavens. He even suffered his grand discovery to be first veri- 
fied by others. A month before he performed the celebrated ex- 
periment v/ith a kite, a French philosopher, Dalibard, act- 
[ 18 ] ing upon the suggestions of Franklin, and adopting the 
means which he had indicated, erected a rod at Marly- 
la- Ville, near Paris, and employed Coiffier, an ex-dra^oon, to 
watch it during a thunder-storm, and the ex-dragoon, in fact, took 
the first electric spark from the rod. By the unanimous verdict 
of mankind, the glory of this discovery has been awarded to 
Franklin, as it was by him that the method of obtaining it yvsls 
originally devised. If the verification doctrines, urged by the 
opponents of Dr. Jackson, are sound, upon the tomb of Coiffier^ 
the ex-dragoon, and not upon that of Franklin, should be in- 
scribed the commemorative motto, '' Eripuit fulmen ccelo.^' 
There is, The case of Frankhn presents other remarkable analogies to the 
however, present. In the latter the attempt has been made to show that 
ticular in there has been no discovery ; that anaesthesia was known to the 
which _ Greeks and the Chinese ; that even the properties of ether were 
Frankhn j^^^g ^^^ ^^,gj| j^nown, and that Dr. Jackson was only posted up 
helow ^^ ^ ^^ the current knowledge of the day upon this subject. So, in 
Jackson— the case of Franklin, the antiquarians attempted to take from him 
for he was ^j^g glory of his discovery by asserting that the very experiment 
.,^^^^^^^^^1 devised by Franklin had been performed a hundred years before. 
'velopi7ig They showed that a sentinel who mounted guard on one of the 
a7id dis- bastions of the castle of Duino, on the Adriatic sea, when he ob- 
new^tfutks^^^^^^ indications of a coming storm, was in the habit of taking 
■in science,'' ^ halberd, always ready for the purpose, which he applied to an 
so that he iron rod standing in a vertical position ; 'on observing sparks at 
to^'^ m^Se ^^^ point, he rang a bell to warn the peasants in the field and the 
them useful fishermen at sea to betake themselves to a place of shelter, 
to man- It is well known that for a short time it was contended that 
^^°^* the discovery of the new" planet Neptune w^as made by Galle, who 

first saw it. Galle, indeed, verified the discovery by using the 
telescope as indicated by Leverrier, w^ho, by calculations founded 
r^^. . . upon the perturbations of Uranus, was enabled to direct the ob- 
far-fetched, server to the point in the heavens where he should find it. The 
and as little final judgment of the scientific world coincides with that of Sir 
applicable David Brewster, as given in his address before the British Asso- 
parison to ciation for the advancement of Science, in 1850. " The planet 
Franklin. Neptune was discovered by Adams and Leverrier before a ray of 
its HgM had entered the human eye." 

The same laws recognised by the scientific world have restored 
to Watt the honor of being the discoverer of the composition of 
water, thouo-h there is no evidence or allegation that he made 
any experiments upon the subject. 

He drew his inference or deduction from facts furnished by Priestly. 
His conclusions were verified by the more accurate experiments of 
Cavendish. The discovery is awarded to Watt upon the ground 
that, from reasoning on the facts furnished by Priestly, he first 



515 

drew the inference that water is composed of oxygen and hydrogem 
combined and condensed, with a loss of a portion ci their latent 
heat. (Vide Arago and Dumas, Eloge of Watt.) 

If the cases above cited have prevailed, « /or^ion must the The award 
vastly stronger case of Dr. Jackson. According to the award of p^,^^^,^ ® 
the French Academy in 1850, Dr. Jackson first verified upon Academy 
himself the physiological jact that persons who inhale etherial was upon 
vapor are for a time deprived of all sensibility. Moreover,* the ^J^,^ ^""^^'^ 
experiments for complete verification, or rather that demonstra- account of 
tion which should satisfy the world, w^ere made under Dr. Jackson's the matter. 
advice and direction, and the very means were pointed out by ^J^^,^ ^o[- 
him. All the results were attained which he had given full as- ^ere not 
surance would follow from those experiments. To such an ex- before 
tent, as it appears from the testimony of Messrs. Barnes and^^^^^^^ ^^_ 
Mclntyre, was the responsibility assumed by him, that Morton amination 
was intact simply his mechanical agent. The case comes em- of the testi- 
phatically within the principles declared by Rev. William Whe- ^ony ^^^_ 
well. Historian of the Inductive Sciences, who says : " I gg^^s of 

do not concede that experiments of verification, made [ 19 ] the hos- 
after a discovery has been clearly brought to viewt by one ^f ^^^EdT^ 

person, and devised by the discoverer, and committed by him for chandler"^' 
performance to another, give the operator a right to claim the and others, 
discovery as his own." (Letter to Dr. C. T. Jackson.) will show 

Upon these precedents and principles Morton's operations can ^^^^^ ^^^^f 
give him no claim to the discovery ; for no great original discov- sumption, 
ery can be made in the inductive sciences, to quote Mr. J. H. f See the 
Abbot's admirable paper, " without a single original experiment, ^njf ^^^^g'a 
without a single independent, original observation, without a sin- y^hether 
gle philosophical induction — the essential, the only common ele- this « dis- 
ment in all discoveries in the inductive sciences — without, in fine, '^'"-^'v ^^"'^ 
originating a single new idea. The most Mr. Morton can claim iroughT to 
is, not in any degree discovery, but performance, verifica^on, en- view'^ by 
deavors to introduce into practical use the discovery of another -^^"- J- 
man." (Littell'^ Living Age, No. 214, p. 569.) 

The scientific precedents furnish us cases which overthrow ^-^^gandid^^ 
another pretension of Mr. Morton. He alleges that he had been Dr.' Mor- 
seeking for some means of preventing pain in dental surgery an- ton's alle- 
terior to Dr. Jackson's communication to him on the 30th Sep- S^^^^"^' 
tember, 1846. No one, not even himself, alleges that he had dis- proofs, are, 
covered any such means anterior to that time. Seeking for a dis- that he 
covery is not making: it. The followinpf case is in point : Hailey, '^^'^"S' po^- 
Hook, and Wren had been seeking to establish, and were upon o-mally of 
the very verge of making, the discovery of the law of gravitation, the idea, 
to wit : that the force of gravity follows the inverse duplicate ^'^^ , ,J^^ 
proportion of the distances when the discovery was made by o-ao-ed '' iri 
Newton. Hailey, meeting with difficulties which neither he nor experi- 
menting 
with ether to verify it, before his interview with Dr. J. But Dr. J.'s counsel thinks that M. 
was not entitled to think, or speculate on the subject, because Jackson was '■'the very 
man of aU others to have made the discovery ;^' a7i.te, p. 497. 



516 

Hook, nor those to whom he applied for assistance, were able to 
solve, went to Cambridge to consult Newton, ^^who," in the 
words of Whewell, " supplied him VN'ith what he had so ardentJy 
sought for.'- (Whewell's History of the Inductive Sciences, vol. 
2, pp. 150-1 ; London edition, 1837.) 

The w^hole civilized world awards this discovery to New^ton. 
Granting all that Morton has alleged in relation to previous ex- 
periments with ether, upon his own showing he was unsuccessful 
until Di\ Jackson '' supplied him with what he so ardently sought 
for." Upon the principles of this case, his alleged seeking, and 
alm^ost TiYiding, gives him no claim to Dr. Jackson's discovery. 

We come now to the period when this discovery was subjected 
to those practical tests and received that verification whidi demon- 
strated to the world that the most severe physical suffering can 
See the be prevented by human agency. Whatever may have been Dr. 
^^^ ^^I^^^^J^Q Jackson's delay in bringing forth his discovery, t}ie undersigned 
surgeons of considers the proof conclusive that the final demonstration and 
the hos- publication of this discovery were eifected mainly through the 
Mr Chan- ^g^^^y of Dr. Jackson. We will now censider the evidence 
dler and presented in support of the fifth proposition, before announced, 
others, namely : that Dr. Jackson caused experiments to be made, under 
J* k r°% his directions and on his responsibility, which verified his conclu- 
" Agency" sion as to the power of sulphuric ether to prevent the pain of the 
in this. severest surgical operations. 

On the 30th day of September, 1846, he instructed Mr. W. T. 
G. Morton, a dentist, of Boston, how to apply the ether, and in- 
duced him to test, under his direction, and with an express as- 
sumption of all the responsibility of the experiment, its power to 
destroy pain in dental operations. On the same day Mr. Mor- 
ton, following the directions he had received, extracted a tooth 
from a patient without causing him any pain, and thus verified 
Dr. Jackson's induction so far as the extraction of teeth 
See Hay- 1^ 20 ] is concerned. The next day Dr. Jackson induced Mr. 
— thatkor- Morton to go to the surgeons of the Massachusetts Gene- 

ton had de-ral Hospital, and request permission to make trial of it to pre- 
terminedto yent the pain of severe surgical operations. The results of these 
the^^ ^^time trials of sulphuric ether co'iiipletely verified Dr, Jackson's con- 
here stated, elusion as to the power of that substance to prevent the pain of 

the severest surgical operations. 
As to the Fortunately Dr. Jackson's communications to Mr. Morton were 
testimony made before two highly intelligent and unimpeachable witnesses, 
of these aentlemen oi education and character, Messrs. George O. Barnes 
Barnes and ^^^ James Mclntyre. Their testimony, reduced to writing within 
Mclntyre, a few weeks after the transaction, is here subjoined : 
(see the a j^ George O. Barnes, of Plymouth, in the Commonwealth of 
p!^84; and Massachusetts, depose and say : That in the fall of 184{) I was a 
as ' to student in chemistry with Dr. Charles T.Jackson; that in the 
Barnes par- 
ticularly, see the testimony of Mr. Whitney before Commissioner Webb, p. 895.) 



51? 

month of September I was at work in the back room of Dr. Jack- 
son's laboratory, when Mr. W. T. G. Morton passed through the 
room, as I supposed to go into the house, which adjoins the lab- 
oratory. He soon returned, having in his hand an India-rubber 
bag belonging to Dr. Jackson. As he went into the apparatus 
or glass-room, I heard Dr. Jackson ask Morton what he wanted 
to do with the bag. He replied that he had a refractory patient, 
who would not allow him to take out her tooth, and that he 
wished to act on her imagination, so as to induce her to submit 
to the operation ; that he meant to fill the bag with air, meaning, 
as I understood, atmospheric air, which would give it a formid- 
able appearance. He then asked how he should go to w^ork to 
distend the bag. * The lungs or a pair of bellows,' said Dr. Jack- Is it con- 
son, 'can do that.' ' But,' continued Dr. Jackson, * your propo- J^.^^^^^^^j. 
sition, Morton, is yerj absurd ; the patient will not be deceived in Morton 
that way ; you will produce no result, and be denounced as an really ask- 
itnpostor.' * ' I don't know that,' replied Morton ; ' I think, with ^^ ^i^ ^^ 
this bag under my arm, w^ell blown up, that I could make her be- g^^g ^ ' 
lieve anything.' While saying this he placed the bag under his bag, "and 
arm, and, pressing the bag with his elbow^ several times, illustrated '^f ^^ did, 
the manner in which he would operate. * If I could once get her J^ent^^^eirn 
mouth open,' said Morton, ' I would have her tooth out. Why,' ployed by 
said he, ' a man once bled to death by the mere force of imagina- ^^' Jack- 
tion.' As he was proce-eding to give an account of this experi- ^2^^^?^ ^^J^^ 
ment, Dr. Jackson interrupted him, and said : ' Pooh ! you don't important 
credit such a story as that, surely I I advise you to have nothing to induction.''' 
do with this idea of using atmospheric air to deceive your patients ; 
it will only injure you.' Morton replied, ' I don't care. I'll 
blow it up.' Morton then left Dr. Jackson, and was going from 
the glass-room,where the latter part of the conversation had been 
principally held, into the front room towards the street door, w^ith 
the bag swinging in his hand, w^hen Dr. Jackson followed him, 
took the bag from his hand, and threw it on the floor. There 
had been also some conversation concerning nitrous oxide, but 
not one word concerning sulphuric ether; and Morton had not 
asked Dr. Jackson to suggest to him anything to prevent pain 
during his operations of extracting teeth. Dr. Jackson then ad- 
dressed him, and said : 'Now, Morton, I can tell you something 
that will produce a real effect. Go to Mr. Burnett's, the apoth- 
ecary, and get some very strong sulphuric ether — the stronger the 
better — spatter it on your handkerchief, put it to your patient's 
mouth, take care that it be well inhaled, and in a minute or two gee above 
perfect insensibility will be produced.' ^ Sulphuric ether !' said and seethe 
Morton, ' what is that ? Is it gas ? Have you got any of it ? testimony 
Show it to me.' Dr. Jackson went to the laboratory case, and Metc'al?^"' 
took down the bottle of sulphuric ether, which Morton examined Wightman 

and others, 
clearly proving that Morton was familiar with ether and experin\entc(l with it long before 
this date (Sept. 30.) The date prior to July 6, is fixed bevond all peradventurebv Metclaf, 
p. 222, and prior to Sept. 28, by Wightman, p. 232. 



518 

and smelt of as though he had never seen the article be- 
[ 21 ] fore, saying, it was ^queer-smelling stuff.' ' Are you sure,' 
said Morton, 'that this will do it?' 'Yes,' replied Dr. 
Jackson, * I am sure.' The rest of the Doctor's reply I did not 
hear, as I passed into the other room for some purpose, being en- 
gaged at the time in analytical work. Afterwards I h&ard Morton 
several times repeat, ' Are you sure it will do it ?' He even 
asked Mr. Mclntyre, another student in the laboratory, and my- 
self, if we thought it would doit. ' Won't it hurt the patient ?' 
said he. 'No,' replied Dr. Jackson, 'it will not do any harm ; 
for I have tried it on myself.' He then briefly described his own 
This, if it experiments and the effects, and said, ' that the patients, after 
said was bi^e^ti^ing a dozen breaths, would fall back in the chair insensible, 
mere spe- and you can do w^ith them as you please without their knowing 
ciilatiou. anything about it, or feeling any pain ; so that you can take out 
their teeth at your leisure.' Dr. Jackson distinctly said, ' it will 
not do the least injury, I assure you.' Indeed, Dr. Jackson urged 
As to re- the matter very earnestly and ^^dth perfect confidence, taking on 
sponsibility i^-j^ggij ^j^^ whole responsibility. He ur^ed Morton to try it on 
see the tes- , . ,^ . .^ . -K .■," i " , ■ /• ir 

timony of ^i^iself, saymg that it was the only way to convince himself. 

the sur- ' Shut yourself up,' said he, ' in your room, and breathe it as I 
1^^°^ ^^' "^^have directed.' At the same time, Dr. Jackson, taking a hand- 
pitals, ^ of ^^I'C^i^- ^^^^ bottle in his hands, went through the movement of 
C. Eddy applying the ether to it, and, placing the handkerchief to his 
and others, niouth, made se'vieral deep inhalations, saying, ' this is the way 
you must take it.' Morton then left, promising to try it imme- 
diately. After Morton left, the students in the laboratory con- 
versed considerably about the proposed experiment : and some 
one asking the question whether Morton would succeed, Dr. Jack- 
son said confidently, 'he will, if he follows my directions.' 

" Either on the afternoon of the same day, or the next day — I 
am not positive which — Morton came to announce the success of 
his trial. He stated that he tried it on a patient with complete 
success ; for, while he extracted a tooth, the person was insensi- 
ble, and knew nothing about it. Dr. Jackson expressed no sur- 
prise, but appeared as if he had expected this result. Mr. Mor- 
ton intended soon to perform another extraction. Dr. Jackson 
then said to him, ' you must go to Dr. Warren, and obtain his 
permission to administer it at the Massachusetts General Hospital, 
See the and if possible it should be in a capital operation ; for the people 
testimony ^y^}} j^q^ believe in the insensibility to pain in case of a mere 
ren^ ' and tooth, since it is very common for patients, in an ordinary case, to 
others. say that it did not hurt them, when the twitch is very sudden, 
and the operation skilfully pei'formed ; this proof would not be 
regarded by the public as satisfactory.' Morton strongly object- 
ed at first to going to the hospital ; that everybody could sm.ell 
the ether, and it would not be kept secret, w^hich it was Morton's 
object to do. He asked if something could not be put into it 
which would conceal the ether odor. Dr. Jackson replied, 'yes; 



519 

some French essence, as the oil of Neroli, may answer in a mea- 
sure, and a pleasant perfume will be left on the patient ;' remark- 
ing, laughingly, ^ the scent of the roses will hang round him 
still.' After some argument, and Dr. Jackson's further insisting 
upon it, Morton promised to go to the hospital. 

'' In the course of this conversation, Morton repeatedly begged 
the doctor to keep the matter a secret. ' No !' answered Dr. 
Jackson, 'I will have no secrets w^ith my professional brethren. 
I intend to give Dr. Keep the same information which I have given 
to you ;' and, in point of fact, every one who afterwards came 
to get information on the subject, was at once told all about it. 

"Some time after this, when the experiments had proved 
successful at the hospital and elsewhere, and while the [ 22 ] 
patent was being negotiated, the right of using the ether 
having been assigned to Morton, Dr. Jackson urged him, in my 
presence, to present the free use of it to the hospital, saying that He says 
they would not buy a patented article, and it ought to be given ^® ^^^^ ^^ 
to the poor. Morton was very reluctant to do this, and asked if 4vears^and 
there w^ere not some pay patients at the hospital w^ho could afford had neither 
to remunerate him for administering the ether. This was argued given it to 
a long time, and Morton finally said that he would do so. "^J^. ^^ 

" A few days after, Morton called at the office when Dr. Jack- 
son was not in, with a glass bulb in his hand, having only two 
openings. He proposed to fasten an India-rubber bag upon one 
of the openings, to contain the sulphuric ether, a sponge to be 
placed in the bulb, and the patient to inhale the ether from the 
other opening ; there being no aperture for the admission of at- 
mospheric air. His intention was, he told us, that the patient 
should breathe the ether vapor pure, without admixture of atmos- 
pheric air. I told him of the indispensability of atmospheric air, 
knowing very well that it would be dangerous to breathe ether 
vapor without the common air being mixed with it. He was told, 
also, that the ether would dissolve the India-rubber. He then 
said that he would stop the opening with a cork, instead of the 
bag ; intending still to exclude the common air. 

" Some time after I heard Dr. Jackson speak of Morton's being 
reckless. He had heard that Morton did not manage well in the 
administration of the ether. Dr. Jaekson expressed his opinion 
that it ought to be in the hands of careful and skilful persons. In 
fact, he was sorry that he had communicated his discovery to Mor- 
ton, and that he had employed him to make those early experi- 
ments with the ether. He spoke strongly on these points. 

" GEORGE O. BARNES. 

"'Boston, Jlfa^ 21, 1847." 

" Sworn before me. 

"JOSIAH QUINCY, 

*' Justice of the Peace,'^^ 

^'I, James Mclntyre, of Bangor, in the State of Maine, depose 



520 

See WMt- and say, that in the month of September, 1846, I was a student 
S tsTo ^^ chemistry with Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston. In the lat- 
Barnes. ter part of September, I was sitting in the front room or office of 
Dr. Jackson's laboratory, wheji Mr. W. T. G. Morton came in 
and asked for Dr. Jackson, and passed through the office into the 
bouse adjoining the laboratory. In a short time Morton came 
into the back room with an India-rubber bag in his hands, and 
passed through into the glass-room. Dr. Jackson came in with 
him, or shortly afterwards. Dr. Jackson asked Morton what he 
wanted with the bag. He said he wished to blow up the bag, 
and act upon a patient's imagination by making her breathe from 
the bag. The precise words of Morton's answer I do not re- 
member; but the purport of it was, that he wanted to extract 
some teeth from a lady who objected on account of the pain, and 
that he expected, by making her breathe from the bag, to believe 
that she would suffer no pain from the extraction of her teeth. 
In order to show the eifect of imagination, he gave an account of 
an experiment upon two criminals, one of whom was bled to 
death, and the other, having his arm pricked and w^arm water 
poured upon it, died from the effect of the imagination. Dr. 
Jackson said that it was absurd, and never occurred. He tolt 
Morton that it would be useless to try that, as he could not ac- 
upon her imagination ; and, if he failed, she would sed 
[ 23 ] him down as a humbug. There v\^as then some conversat 
tion about the use of exhilerating gas ; whether it was 
first mentioned by Dr. Jackson or Morton, I do not remember. 
Morton asked if he could not make it. Dr. Jackson told him 
that he could not succeed without apparatus and the assistance of 
some one who had some chemical knowledge ; and that, if he un- 
dertook to make it, he would get nitric oxide instead of nitrous 
oxide. He asked Dr. Jackson if he could not prepare some for 
him ; this Dr. Jackson declined to do, on account of his business. 
Morton was then going away with the bag, and I have no doubt 
intended to use the bag by distending it with atmospheric air. 

" As he was going. Dr. Jackson told him that he could tell 
him something that would make the patient insensible, and then 
he could do what hs had a mind to with them. Morten asked 
what it was. Dr. Jackson then told him to go to Burnett's, and 
get some pure sulphuric ether, and pour it on a handkerchief, and 
put it to the patient's mouth, and let her inhale it. Morton asked 
what sulphuric ether was, what kind of looking stuff it was. I 
sta/ed in the front room while Morton and Dr. Jackson went to 
look at the ether. From Morton's question about the ether, I am 
satisfied that he knew nothing about i<-s properties or nature. I 
heard Morfon ask Dr. Jackson very particularly whether it would 
be safe to use it. Dr. Jackson assured him that it was perfectly 
safe, and alluded to the students at Cambridge having used it. 
Morton appeared to be afraid to use the ether, and asked him 
several times if it was safe, Dr. Jackson advised Morton to try 



521 

it himself. Morton asked me if I would be willing to take it. I 
told him that I would. The whole conversation between Dr. 
Jackson and Morton I did not hear, as I was not all the time in 
the room with them. But I felt sure, from the conversation I had 
heard, that he came to the laboratory without any idea of using 
ether, or anything else which would destroy sensibility to pain ; 
that he knew nothing about its properties ; that the effect which 
ether would produce was communicated to him by Dr. Jackson ; 
and that he was induced to try it only by the repeated assurances 
of Dr. Jackson that it would produce insensibility, and could be 
administered with safety. The next day after the above conver- 
sation, Morton came into the office, and told Dr. Jackson that the 
ether had worked nicely ; that the patient suffered no pain. 

'• During the time that I was in Dr. Jackson's laboratory, I never 
heard him express any doubt about the effect which ether would ^ 
produce in causing insensibility to pain, but have heard him say j^^ ^^^^^^^2 
that it ought to be administered with care and by persons acquaint- tation, it is 
ed with the nature of it. believed, in 

'' JAMES McINTYRE." ^'lyf^.'^dl'^ 

" United States of America, | I^'^^m 

State of Massachusetts, County of Suffolk, City of Boston, j ^^' respon^-^ * 
" On the first day of April, A. D. 1847, before me, came James iiHty was 
Mclntyre, and, being duly sworn, did depose and say as within ^^^*^^^* 
written, and did sign the said within writing, as his deposition in son's 
and concerning the matter herein specified. famous 

'• In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal of ^/?°^^ ^®" 
office, on this 1st day of April, A. D. 1847. ZvLs aU 

" JOHN P. BIGELOW, the ^^boid- 

'' JVotary Public.'^ ^^^^ ^^^ ^? 

say audaci- 

In considering the comparative merit of the parties concerned ^2/" *o^<^^- 
in the application of this discovery, it is important to determine Jhe^gtrtet 
where the responsibility of the first experiment rested. If thought to 

the experiment had been fatal, would the chemist and [ 24 ] Jackson 
physician, or the dentist, have been held accountable for and Morton 

the calamity ?* He who incurred the largest risk is entitled to see pages 
the largest honors and reward of success. 400, 401, 

The undersigned cannot better express his views upon this^^^^ ^^^^^ 
point than by quoting the language of a high medical authority, not ^Uow 
the late accomplished Dr. Gay : — "Mr. Morton, by acting under Ms name to 
the authority of an educated physician and man of high scientific ^^ ^^.^^^^*" 
reputation, was shielded from all responsibility but that assumed^ 
by him as Dr. Jackson's agent. There was no demand for that f Here it 
moral courage which some have ascribed to him. Let the object ^^^^^^"^^^ 
ofMr. Morton's visit to Dr. Jackson be remembered, when the ,^L^,-2^^^^^^^ 
pecuhar properties of sulphuric ether were first made known tot^m/'else- 
him. His purpose was to deceive a patient in a dental operation, ^^^^^ ^s a 
by acting on the imagination.! Dr. Jackson dissuaded him from it, Sfication fn 
and brought forward a long-cherished idea of his own, which he 1842. 



522 

had previously communicated to several persons, — his plan for the 
prevention of pain in surgical operations. He supposed that he 
might safely entrust to Mr. Morton the few and simple directions 
necessary for carrying the plan into effect, without his personal 
superintendence. In obeying these directions, Mr. Morton as- 
sumed only the responsibility of the nurse who administers a new 
and bold prescription of a physician. 
Will any "The responsibility of the operation rested with Dr. Jackson, 
Tbe^^able^to ^^ ^^ch as if he had personally administered the ether. The 
show bow, maxim, 'Quifacifper alium fact f per £€,' is strictly applicable 
in what in this case. Dr. Jackson has not, by his mere absence during 
to^what ex^^^^ execution of his directions, forfeited any portion of the credit 
tent Dr. that would otherwise have been his due." 

J. would If the person to whom Morton first administered the ether had 
have been \)qq^ killed by it, there Cannot be a doubt that the fatal result 
if the first would have been attributed to Dr. Jackson's prescription or direc- 
patient attions. In case of a judicial investigation Barnes and Mclntyre 
l^^^'^^P^^^Nvould have been called to prove that Morton administered the 
killed by ether in pursuance of the instructions, and under the directions of 
the inhala- Dr. Jackson, and upon his medical and scientific responsibility. 
*T?^ iri fi^^ ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ there can be but little doubt that Morton would have 
have beard pl^s^ded his entire ignorance both of medicine and chemistry, and 
that Dr. J. would have justified himself by declaring that he merely followed 
only said the directions of a physician and chemist, upon whom alone the 
Chandler^' ^0^^^ ^^^ legal responsibility should rest. 

testifies,) More than two months after the 30th of September, 1846, when 
^'whydo7i'tjyr. Jackson communicated his discovery to Morton, the latter, his 
'ether?'' ^'^^ Partners and agents, finding that the claims to the discovery on 
the ground of verification could not be sustained, for the first time 
* It is a set up a new claim, namely, that Morton had been for several 
r^Gif^Y ^^o^ths making experiments with ether. Granting all that Mor- 
of fact here ton pretends upon this point, it amounts simply to this, that he 
can be bet- was seeking for the discovery. Nobody alleges that he hd.d found 
ter decided ^^^ anything before Dr. Jackson's communication to him. The 
and that undersigned, however, believes all Mr. Morton's allegations, res- 
too on ex pecting his previous experiments with ether, are wholly unfounded. 
parte repre- Whoever impartially considers the evidence in this case, must form 
seutations. ,-, •• ^^•*^i-t-« ^t.- -^^ 

But the the opmion entertamed m I^ ranee upon this pomt. 

French The first thing to be considered in the inquiry as to the truth of 

Academy Morton's allegations, is the high improbability that a man of ex- 
snch thinff^ ^^^^^ ignorance upon chemical or medical subjects, should have 
nor is it taken the very first steps towards making this discovery. The un- 
compre- dersigned has no doubt of his total ignorance in relation to sulphuric 
1-ow ^ thi ^^^^^> ^^ shown in his inquiries of Barnes and Mclntyre ; as he was 
report (on unable to answer questions relative to the composition of 

the evi- [ 25 ] sulphuric ether, addressed to him personally, by the un- 
Tives'^ t^^' dersigned, since this subject has been before this commit- 

knowledge of "the opinion entertained in France." 



523 

tee. Dr. Gay thus speaks of his want of medical knowledge : . There be- 
'^ Mr. Barnes testifies that some time after the earliest experiments to°showthe 
with ether, Mr. Morton showed him an apparatus for administering extent of 
itj with no provision for the admission of air ; and although told t^ie learn- 
by Mr. Barnes that the admission of the air was indispensible, heJ^oQ ■^^. 
gave proof, as late as December last, that he was not aware of the Stanley oii 
danger of too great an exclusion of it. At that time Dr. N. C. Keep, chemistry, 
to whom we are much indebted for his valuable experiments and ob- J^gj-^fi^L^^ 
servations upon the best mode of using the ether, found it difficult to respectful- 
induce him to permit the air to pass freely through his apparatus." ly to doubt 

Mr. Morton's own conduct and admissions, in the earlier period T-^^^fJ*^^ 
of this controversy, prove that he could not have experimented ^^s in the 
with sulphuric ether, or have suspected the existence of its anaes- expounder 
thetic properties, previously to the 30th of September. Mr. Eddy, ^^ the hear- 
Morton's professional adviser and* co-partner in the patent, admits certainly 
that Morton never informed him in relation to his experiments something 
with ether. Yet Mr. Eddy declares that he advised Morton that *© ^e better 
he could not take out an exclusive "patent for the discovery, be- ^Ith ^ether 
cause, to use Mr. Eddy's own words, " Dr. Jackson had suggested than a man 
to him the propriety of experimenting with ether." Mr. Morton, who, to say 
although urging his objections to Dr. Jackson's having any share ^^^ ^^^^l 
in the patent, made no allusion to lis alleged previous experi- voted the 
ments. It is not to be conceived that he would not have commu- last 6 years 
nicated ali his claims, and particularly this, upon which he f^ow^^^^^^^ ^^^l 
almost exclusively rests, to his partner and legal adviser. the subject. 

Mr. Morton's unqualified admissions to many of his assistants 

and agents, from the 1st of October, 1846, till February, 1847, ^his is a 
S • 1 , ^ ^ X ^ • • "^ \ ' question of 

prove nis later statements untrue, as to previous experiments, and credibility 

show conclusively that he w^as indebted to Dr. Jackson for his fully con- 
first knowledge of the anaeesthetic properties of sulphuric ether, fi^^^^^r^-^ 
and for instructions how to apply it. Extracts from depositions j^^p. *^* 
proving these admissions are here presented. All the witnesses 
are men of mature age, and none of them have been discredited. 

Says D. P. Wilson, of Boston : l05-'6-T 

'* Respecting the authorship of the discovery, I do not feel the 
least embarrassment or doubt, for my opinion has been wholly « yet see 
founded upon the narrative and declarations of Mr. Morton, in his letter to 
which, uniformly and without reserve, he ascribed its authorship to Wells, and 
Dr. Jackson, never speaking of himself otherwise than as the first ^i^^^^^^^^r 
and fortunate person to whom Dr. Jackson had communicated it. cation^for a 

" I here speak of the time which intervened betw^een the 11th patent; and 
day of November, A. D. 1846, or thereabouts, and the month of |^f ^ ^J tes- 
February then next ensuing, when Morton first claimed the dis-timony *^as 
CO very to be his own.* ' to the in- 

" On the aforesaid 11th of November, I concluded a contract troduction 
with Mr. Morton to become an assistant in his office. During son'sname' 
this month I had conversations with Morton, in w^hich he expressly 
stated that ' he was indebted to Dr. Jackson for the idea of the 



524 

This is un- new application of ether, and had received instructions from him 
r„d»fl;howtoapplyit."' 
disproved 

by all the Said Morton to Wilson, in concluding an account of the inter- 
denl'^^''''^''^^^ of the 30th of September, with Dr. Jackson: 

r 9c 1 " ^^' Jackson directed me to apply the vapor of pure sul- 
•- '* J phuric ether with a handkerchief, or folded cloth, which 
This would render the patient perfectly insensible, when I could extract 

stands ^ her teeth with- out her knowing it. I seized upon the new idea, 
against half ^p^j immediately commenced my first experiments with the ether.' 
credible ' " This narrative, received from Morton's own lips, was con- 
witnesses, firmed by statements and expressions made by him, and by the 

2r . T?^°? assistants and others connected with the office, from day to day." 
Metcalfand • ^ J J 

Wightman 

were Says Alvah Blaisdell, of Boston : 

enough, if 

a j^l ll^^l |-JQ;ig — Qn or about the last of September or the first 
of October — I had a conversation with Mr. Morton, to the follow- 
ing effect : I asked him how he succeeded in the application of 
Seep. 113 ^i^^^^- He replied, 'most satisfactorily.' I then asked him how 
he had dared to use an agent so powerful. He told me that he 
had received the most positive assurance from Dr. C. T. Jackson 
that it was perfectly safe. I remarked, ' then you have consulted 
Dr. Jackson.' He replied in the affirmative, and stated that the 
idea of employing sulphuric ether was first suggested to him by 
Dr. Jackson. I asked him thereupon if it was Dr. Jackson who 
made the discovery. Mr. Morton at once answered ' that he did, 
and that Dr. Jackson had communicated it to him, with instruc- 
tions as to the proper mode of applying the ether ; and that having 
acted in accordance with his advice, his (Morton's) practice had 
been successful, the result in every way answering to Dr. Jack- 
son's predictions.' 

"I met Mr. Morton frequently afterwards, and conversed with 
him upon the subject of ether. He uniformly made the same 
declarations, awarding the discovery to Dr. Jackson." 

Says J. A. Robinson, of Salem : 

"From Morton's conversation, I came to the conclusion that 
Dr. Jackson was the discoverer of the new application of ether. 
I remember asking Morton, 'how he could sell a right to the new 
agent. Dr. Jackson having discovered it. He replied distinctly, 
and in substance, 'that he had purchased of Dr. Jackson the ex- 
clusive right to the discovery, and patented it.' Morton unre- 
servedly admitted that there w^s some one behind himself con- 
nected with the discovery as its originator, and that that person 
was Dr. Charles T. Jackson." 



Seep. 112. 



525 



Says Nathan B. Chamberlain, of Boston: 

"I am certain that this [interview] was several days after the 
first of October, of the year 1846. Mr. Morton, by his conver- 
sation at that time, gave me every reason to believe that some one 
other than himself was the discoverer of the 'preparation.' He 
said distinctly, that it was the suggestion of another, and, from 
Mr. Morton's manner of speaking of Dr. Jackson in connection 
with tlie 'preparation,' as he did quite frequently during the inter- 
view, no doubt was left on my mind that Dr. Jackson was the 
discoverer." 

Says Allen Clark, of New York : 

" During the whole interview [December, 1846,] Dr. Morton 
never claimed to have discovered the new use of ether 
himself, but left a full and decided impression on my mind [27] 
that Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston, was its sole dis- 
coverer, and that he (Dr. Jackson) had first communicated it to 
him. 

'' I have since been greatly surprised that Dr. Morton should 
assume to have discovered etherization ; since from his own de- 
clarations, and the representations of his agents, I had drawn an 
entirely different conclusion." 

Says Horace J, Payne, of Troy, New York : 

''During this interview, [January 2,] Dr. Morton stated repeat- 
edly and emphatically, that Dr. Charles T. Jackson, of Boston, 
was the sole discoverer of the new agent for producing insensibi- see pages 
lity to pain, and that Dr. Jackson had communicated it to him. HO, 112. 
Furthermore, that all the knowledge which he possessed in rela- 
tion to its properties and its application, had come to him from 
Dr. Jackson, and that he never had any idea of applying sulphuric 
ether, or that sulphuric ether could be applied, f®r the aforesaid 
purposes, until Dr. Jackson suggested it to him, and gave him full 
instructions." 

Says Daniel S. Blake, of Boston : 

" On the 21st day of December, 1846, 1 was employed by Dr. 
W. T. G. Morton as his agent to sell patent rights of the ' letheon ; ' See p. 109. 
and in pursuance of my duty as his agent, I travelled through parts 
of New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and Pennsylvania, and 
sold rights to different persons. 

" The first time I had any conversation with Dr. Morton upon 
the subject of the discovery of the application of sulphuric ether, 



526 

to the relief of pain attending surgical operations, was when the 
discovery had been lately made known, viz : in the fail of 1846. 
It was, I remember, on the day that the operation in surgery was 
performed at the Bromfield House, in which sulphuric ether was 
used. I asked Dr. Morton of the origin of the discovery, and he 
then told me that Dr. Charles T. Jackson had made the discovery, 
and had communicated it to him a short time previous, and that 
he first applied it under Dr. Jackson's directions. 

" Dr. W. T. G. Morton always said, and gave me to understand 
in ail my interviews with him, (and I was his agent in selling pat- 
ent rights for the use of the Metheon,' or sulphuric ether, for about 
two months,) that Dr. Charles T. Jackson was the original dis- 
coverer of the application of sulphuric ether to the relief of pain 
attending surgical operations ; that he (Morton) had, in the autumn 
of 1846, first used sulphuric ether, and then had used it and ap- 
plied it under the instructions and directions of Dr. Jackson." 

The only direct evidence which has been produced to support 
.Morton's claim to pi^evious experiments, is that furnished by the 
not so. If affidavits of his brother-in-law, Francis Whitman, William P. 
the testi- Leavitt, and Thomas Spear, three boys in his office, and Grenville 
mony of all Q. Hayden, a partner in dentistry. The affida^'its of these witnesses 
nesses Tut "^^^^^ taken in a secret room* in Morton's office, on the same day, 
Wightman D. P. Wilson having been ordered out for this purpose. If the 
and Met- testimony of these witnesses is proved to be false, no consideration 
STcken ^^^ ^^ to be given to the very indirect and indefinite statements of 
out of the Messrs. Wightman and Metcalf. 

case, these One of tnese witnesses (Spear) confessed to Messrs. Lord 

^^^d'vrr^ [ 28 ] and Palmer that he might have been wrong as to his dates, 
is admitted, The falsehood of his former testimony is now conclusively 

and whose established by his admissions to Mr. Calvin Angier, a highly re- 
dates are gpectable merckant of Boston. 

yond pro- This important testimony of Mr. Angier is now published for 
hability of the first time, 
error, carry 

hack Dr. " COMMONWEALTH OF MaSSAOHUSETTS, ) 
Morton- s a jt n t SS. 

experim'ts Suffolk, j 

tvitk sxd- City of Boston, Becemher 19, A. J)., 1851. 

■phuric ether a j^ Calvin Angier, of said Boston, in said Suffolk county, mer- 
mer ^ ^pre- chant, do, on oath, depose and say, that 1 have known Thomas 
vioustoDr. R. Spear, junior, from his infancy, and that I am well acquainted 
Jackson's ^yith the father and mother of said Thomas R. Spear, junior, and 
conSuni- ^^^^ ^ have been in the habit of visiting Mr. Spear, senior, and 
cation to that I have intimately known Thomas R. Spear, junior ; that I 
him. have had numerous conversations with Thomas R. Spear, junior, 

on the subject of the ether discovery, smce its publication to the 
See pages world, and that he (said Thomas R. Spear, junior,) has uniformly 
218, 219. stated to me, that he knew that the ether discovery originated 

* This is false. See Burbank, p. 435. 



527 

with Dr. Charles T. Jackson, and that he knew that W. T. G. 
Morton obtained his first knowledge of this discovery of etheriza- 
tion from Dr. Jackson, and that Mr. Morton had told him (Thomas 
R. Spear, junior,) that he had learned from Dr. Jackson that the 
inhalation of the vapor of ether w^ould prevent any sensation of 
pain in surgical operations ; that said Thomas R. Spear, junior, 
declared to me that he did not breathe ether vapor until after 
Morton told him, that the said Morton had obtained his knowl- 
edge of it from Dr. Jackson, and that Dr. Jackson had assured 
him of the safety of inhaling it. I think that the said Spear also 
stated that he himself had first called on Dr. Jackson to assure 
himself of the safety of the process, before he (said Spear) had 
dared to inhale it. I do further depose and say, that the said 
Thomas R. Spear, junior, has repeatedly said to me that the first 
knowledge of the inhalation of the vapor of sulphuric ether that 
Morton had, he obtained Irom Dr. Jackson; and that the said 
Morton had frequently so stated to him, the said Thomas R. Spear, 
junior, and that said Morton, in his early use of the said ether in 
his dental operations, always attributed his first knowledge of the 
discovery to Dr. Jackson ; and further I do depose and say, that 
said Thomas R. Spear, junior, only attributed to said Morton, and 
all that he attributed to him (the said Morton) was the use of 
the ether after Dr. Jackson's prescription, and that said Morton 
deserved credit for its early administration, but that said Morton 
was not the discoverer nor the originator of the discovery ; and I See the 
do further add, and under oath state, that said Thomas R. Spear, examinat'n 
junior, told me that he certainly should not have inhaled the ether cross- 
if he had not first had it €lirectly from the authority of Dr. Jack- of Leavett 
son, that it w^ould be safe for him to inhale it. before the 

" (Signed,) CALVIN ANGIER." ^: «• Com- 

^ ^ '^ missioner 

in Boston, 

^' Commonwealth of Massaqousetts, ) fully esta- 

Suffolk, \ ^^' blishingthe 

" City of Boston, December 19, 1851. by Spear In 

" Then personally appeared the above named Calvin Angier, a his deposi- 

party well known to me, and made solemn oath to the truth of ^\^°- Spear 

the above affidavit, to him by me carefully read, by him in my ^JJ^erstood 

presence subscribed. to be in Ca- 

" (Signed,) ABRAHAM JACKSON, Jr., 

'^Justice of the Peace.'' 



lifornia. 



The following is the affidavit of Spear, and is intro- 
duced to show how completely he has contradicted him- [ 29 ] 
self by his admission to Angier. It must be borne in 
mind that the three other witnesses all refer in facts and dates 
sworn to by Spear, and since contradicted by him. Whitman 
says that soon after July, Morton sent William and Thomas out 
to hire a man to come in and have an experiment tried upon him. 



528 

Leavitt refers to the same circumstances, and describes the cir- 
cumstances of the first inhalation by Spear, without fixing the 
date. Hayden says that Morton, in August, 1846, tried to induce 
three young men in the office to take the gas. 

*• Boston, March 25, 1847. 

"I, Thomas R. Spear, jr., of Boston, in the State of Massachu- 
setts, depose and say : 

" That, about the first of August, 1846, at request of Dr. 
Morton, I inhaled a portion of ether, which William P. Leavitt 
brought from Brewer, Stevens & Go's, in a demijohn, in Dr. Mor- 
ton's office. The rest of the young men in the office were afraid 
to take it ; but, having taken what I supposed to be the same 
before at the Lexington Academy, I did not hesitate to take it 
when I learned what it was. 

"About a week after the ether was purchased of Brewer, Ste- 
vens & Co., Dr. Morton was expecting some persons at his office 
to witness an experiment, and he then offered me a sum of money 
if I would be present and inhale the ether. I when home and 
consulted my parents, and they advised me not to go. I have 
often heard Dr. M. say, that when he had completed ms invention 
for extracting teeth without pain, he should be satisfied. 

"Ever after Dr. Hayden came into the office. Dr. Morton 
seemed wholly absorbed in making this discovery, and had a 
number of bottles, an India-rubber bag, &c., &c., with w^hich he 
prosecuted his experiments in the little room adjoining the front 
office, where he frequently locked himself in. 

" Dr. Morton offered me five dollars if I would get some one 
to come into the office, and to have an experinuent tried upon him 
of having a tooth extracted while under the operation of gas. I 
went, accordingly, down to the wharves, in company wdth Wm. 
P. Leavitt, in order to get some one for this purpose, but did not 
gei any one to have the experiment tried upon. 

"THOMAS R. SPEAR, Jr." 

It is very iustly remarked by Doctors Lord and Jones, in their 
See pages • •. '' "^ . "^ r u 
218 219. mmority report, as lollows : 

" This (Spear's) confession, under the circumstances, is alone 
sufficient to dec'de the whole of this part of the testimony, even if 
there were not abundant inherent proof of its utter worthlessness. 
All four of these witnesses were together in the office of Morton. 
Their affidavits were prepared together. They were all in the 
same interest. They all profess to know and to testify to the 
same thing. If the testimony of one is confessed to be false in 
„ the only essential particular, namely, the date, that of the others 
S«^P-«-'-is false likewise. ^ ' ^' ' 



529 

*' But the falsehood of this vital part of the testimony m favor 
of Morton's pretensions to prior experiments, does not rest upon 
the confession of Spear alone. This confession is corroborated 
by the positive oaths of John E. Hunt, George H. Hayden and 
Don Pedro Wilson. 

'^John E. Hunt, an assistant in the office of Morton in Novem- 
ber, 1846, swears that Morton told him that he (Morton), at that 
time, namely, November, 1846, had never inhaled the 
vapor of sulphuric ether, and that Spear assured him, a [ 30 ] 
few days after his entrance into the office, on an occasion 
of inspiring- the ether, that it was the first time that he (Spear) 
had ever inhaled it. (See Appendix.) 

" George H. Hayden, of Calais, Maine, (see Appendix B,) 
swears that Spear told him, some time in the month of November, 
1846, that the day before was the first time he had ever inspired 
the vapor of ether. 

*'Don Pedro Wilson, an assistant in Morton's office, says (See 
Appendix,) that the first time he knew of Spear inhaling the 
ether was about the middle of November, 1846, which corresponds 
^vith the statements of the other witnesses. 

*^ ft should be borne in mind, in this connection, that the depo- 
sitions of Spear, Whitman, Leavitt and Hayden, were taken a 
short time after Morton found it for his interest to set up preten- 
sions to the original discovery, and it appears in evidence that 
they were never heard, previous to that time, to claim the dis- 
covery for Morton. 

" There is nothing left but the testimony of Theodore Metcalf 
and Joseph M. Wightman to sustain the pretensions of Morton io 
experiments for ascertaining the ansesthetic power of sulphuric 
ether, prior to this interview with Dr. Jackson on the 30th of 
September." 

Upon this the minority of the former committee remark: Vague? 

^ ' See his late 

esaminat'n 

'' Ihe statement oi Mr. Metcalt seems to be too vague to pos- (p.222) and 
sess much weight in view of so great a mass of conflicting testi- cross exa- 
mony. ^-«™. 

*'A11 that is said by this witness, in relation to the conversation s.Commis- 
between himself and Mr. Morton about the nature and effects of sioner in 
sulphuric ether, at the store of Burnett, may be easily explained ^^^^^°' ^^? 
without supposing that Morton was engaged, as he alleges he gtnai/stat"- 
was, in any experiments to test thq efficacy of this agent in the ments and 
subjugation of pain. *" deposit'ns. 

*' The very small vial, said to be an ounce vial, alleged by Mr. ^^^ ^"^ i^e 
Metcalf to have been in the hands of Morton on that occasion, clearer, 
even supposing him not to have mistaken sulphuric for chloric "}^''® ^^°" 
ether, might have been procured for use as an anodyne in his more *'con- 
family, or for trial on the nerves of teeth, and might very naturally vinclng. 

34 



530 

have led to the remarks and inquiries, which are narrated by 
Metcalf as having taken place, as well as to tales of school-boy 
experiments of its inhalation, &c., but it is certainly very impro- 
bable that so small a vial was procured for the purpose of experi- 
menting upon its effects by inspiration. 
See his " The testimony of Mr. Wightman is more important, a^d un- 
^^d^^^o^^ less there is, on his part, some extraordinary confusion in the 
examinat'n dates of interviews with Morton, his statements are brought into 
before U. direct antagonism to a very formidable array of testimony, pro- 
S.Commis-jqy(>g^ by Dr. Jackson, to show the entire ignorance of Morton of 
Boston his ^^^^ efficacy of sulphuric ether to remove the sensation of pain, 
original leaf ''The affidavit of Mr. Chamberlain, a philosophical instrument 
from his niaker, of as high respectabihty as Wightman, discloses the fact 
annexed,' ^^^^ ^^- Chamberlain, some time in the summer of 1846, sent 
(p. 232) fix- Morton to Mr. Wightman for 'India-rubber bags,' which were 
ingthedate (I (33igned to be attached to a blow-pipe, in Morton's office, for 
positive y. gQjj^g yggg connected with dentistry : and also the fact that he 
(Chamberlain) was consulted by Morton in regard to the gasses 
proper to be used in these bags ; and that he saw nothing of Mor- 
ton after this interview, until some time in the month of 
[ 31 ] October following, when he (Morton) further consulted 
with him in regard to an 'ether inhaler,' &c. 
'' Now Mr. Wightman seems, in his statement, to connect these 
India-rubber bags, which are described by Mr. Chamberlain as 
being designed for a blow-pipe in the summer of 1846, with the 
inspiration of ether and the 'ether inhaler,' respecting which Mr. 
Chamberlain swears he w^as consulted (and probably Mr. Wight- 
man was also) by Morton in the month of October, which was 
after the interviews wherein Dr. Jackson imparted to Morton all 
his knowledge in regard to ether." 
The Hon. The undersigned is satisfied, after carefully examining ajl the 
raember no testimony bearmg upon the point, that the inter'\"iew of Morton 
tisfied ^but "^^'i^h IMr. Wightman, at which the conversation respecting sul- 
Mr. Wight- phuric ether took place, occurred after the 30th of September, 
man's cha- and after Morton had derived from Dr. Jackson the information 
i^^eacha^' respecting the properties of ether. Morton, in his Memoir, causes 
ble, and his it to be distinctly understood, that he proceeded to Dr. Jackson's 
book fixes office on the same day that he had the interview with Wightman. 

Ltf ot!t^ "^ He says, moreover, that on that day Dr. Jackson gave him "a 
eontempo- rt ^ • \ i ^ • -^ ' • ^\ ^■^ i>.t ^ •!• 

raneonsen- nask with a glass tube inserted m it. Mr. Ivlclntyre says m his 

try. deposition: "I was in the laboratory of Dr. Charles T. Jackson 

on the 30th day of September, A. D. 1846, on which day Mr. W. 
T. G. Morton called to procure an India-rubber bag, for the pur- 
pose declared in my deposition of April 1st, A. D. 1847. Mr. 
Morton did not, to my knowledge, ask for or take from the labora- 
tory a glass tube and flask of any description whatever, which I 
should certainly have known if he had. A few days after the said 
30th of September, on the second or third day of October, Mr. 



531 

Morton did call and take from the laboratory the above apparatus." 
Mr. George O. Barnes also testifies, " that Mr. W. T. G. Morton 
did not, on the 30th day of September, take from the laboratory of 
Dr. Charles T. Jackson a glass tube or flask, or any apparatus 
whatever for the inhalation of sulphuric ether. I was in the labora- 
tory daring the whole time that Mr. Morton remained, and heard 
the conversation between Dr. Jackson and himself. He did call, 
three days after, to procure such apparatus, and Dr. Jackson then 
gave him a glass flask and tube, with instructions for their use." 
These depositions leave no doubt that Mr. Wightman was mis- 
taken in the date he has given to the interview with Morton. 

" Unless, therefore, the recollections of Mr. Wightman are be- 
wildered by confounding the occurrences of two conversations 
with Morton at different times, his testimony, though not exactly 
conflicting with that of Mr. Chamberlain, is certainly unsustained 
by any other reliable evidence of Morton's early experiments, and 
is in* vital conflict with the w^hole current of proof solemnly at- 
tested by a large number of Morton's former agents and assistants." 

Finally, the undersigned believes that the statements of Morton, This is an 
and the testimony of witnesses who have been within his control, assertion 
are entitled to no credit, because there is conclusive evidence that shielded by 
Morton is capable of giving and manufacturing false testimony, sionar^pri- 
His own acts in relation to this controversy completely discredit vilege. If 
hira as a witness.* i^ade else- 

It is known that a former committee of Congress had this^ould be- 
subject under consideration. A report was presented by Mr. Ed- pronoimc'd 
wards, in behalf of three of the committee, in favor of Mr. Mor- ^ " ^^^^^j 
ton's claims. Two of the committee reported adversely to Mor- anT^Sf. 
ton, giving the whole credit of the discovery to Dr. Jackson. No ci'ous libel" 
action upon the subject was ever had by Congress. The reports andsoesta- 
of the committee, in fact, were never called for. The subject was ^^^^^?^^. ^^ 
not even presented in the Senate ; yet Morton published Such a'pas- 

the following advertisement in the Boston Atlas of April f 33 1 sage might 
14th, 1849: -^beexpect'd 

' ^^ trom the 

A CARD. advocate, 

but not 

" The subscriber, having returned from Washington, begs leave -^'^-JJ !^® 
to give notice to his friends and patients, {Cojigress having de-'had^ not a 
cided the ether controversy in his favor,) that he is now able to particle of 
devote his attention to the various operations in dental suro-ery, ^^'^i^^nce^ 
particularly to the administration of ether. '' ' w^i^ti^T 

" Persons contemplating having artificial teeth inserted are as- or excusing 
sured that nothing can surpass the excellence of his ooerations in ^^^^^^ ^ ^'^^' 
this department. " W. T. G. MORTON,' M. D." ^^^ ''^^'^<^^- 

* Pray, at what period of the proceedings before the Committee was this in- 
troduced ? Did any member of the Committee ever lieur of it ? A7as not Mr. 
Stanly himself the first to object to any collateral inquiries bearing on character ? 
and did not Dr. Morton challenge such inquiry if allowed to extend to Dr. Jackson. 



53 C 

^o such Of this advertisement Hon. F. \V. Lord, a member of the com- 
lverhel?d ^^i^^^^ before referred to, in a letter of April 16th, 1849, addressed 
of before to Dr. Jackson. and examined by the undersigned, speaks in the 
ihe Com- following strong language : " Morton, too, has advertised that 
?!,^f^" V C'ongress has recognised him as the discoverer of etherization, &c. 
it be' asked. This is quite characteristic of the unscrupulousness of the charla- 
ib this a re- tan. How any honorable man can sllow his name to be asso- 
port on the cia|;ej ^yith the schemes of this fellow, after the public announce- 
before the nient of such downright and deliberate falsehood, is a mystery to me. 
commiitee. '' The truth is, (and ^lorton knows it), that Congress has not 
acted at all upon the subject, nor decided anything. Three mem- 
bers (of the House of Representatives), out of two hundred and 
twenty-six, have adopted a repojt conceding to Morton the chief 
merit of the discovery, and two of the same body have denied to 
him all claim, and the House ordered, as is usual on all such occa- 
sions, the two reports to be printed. This is all. There has been 
no action of any kind/"^ 

This statement of Morton could not have originated in a mis- 
take or a misapprehension. It was a bold assertion, deliberately 
published with the intention to deceive the public, and to increase 
his practice in dentistry. This is alone sutficient to throw suspi- 
cion upon any allegation made by Morton. 
Can Mr. The question as to Morton's character is made by the report a 
Stanley ixiost pertinent one in this issue. It might have been one most 
read this proper to consider, even if the report of the majority had not 
report? Did made it necessary, as an act of simple justice to Dr. Jackson, to 

benotrwL-e pui^lish the evidence which has been presented to discredit Mor- 
himself to f ., ^ 

exclude all ton as a witness. 

inquiry as The majority report declares that "the committee have no rea- 

to charac-gQji ^q doubt the entire truth and accuracy of Morton's statement 

Iv'^ imperti- °^ experiment upon himself, although he cannot verify it by direct 

nenti and evidence." The majority report constantly refers to matters as 

was it not established facts, v%-hich are proved only by Morton's own state- 

Dr M^ortmi ^^^^t. He is admitted as a witness in the case, and no doubt is 

not asking expressed as to the truth of the statements made by him. Dr. 

it? Jackson remonstrated before the committee against any weight 

being given to Morton's statements. He declared that he was a 

man of infamous character, and therefore wholly unworthy of 

credit. Dr. Jackson, by his counsel, offered to the committee 

evidence to prove Morton's infamous character, for the purpose 

Onmotion ^f discreditiug him as a witness. The committee declined to re- 

?Y. ^' ^^^' ceive this evidence upon the grounds distinctly declared by them, 

that the committee should throw out of the question the state- 

»ments of both parties. This the committee have not done with 

respect to Mr. Morton. The committee, moreover, reprove Dr. 

Jackson for having spoken of Morton with great bitterness, and 

declare that " they deem it but just to say that Dr. Jackson's 

charges are not only not supported, but are wholly inconsistent 



533 

with the current proofs in the case." Dr. Jackson thus 
stands charged as a false calumniator. The undersigned, [ 33 J 
therefore, believing Dr. Jackson to be an honest and truth- 
ful man, cannot, without doing him gross injustice, withhold the 
evidence as to Morton's character. If there is anything harsh 
or severe in this procedure, it has been rendered necessary by the 
course of the majority. 

It v.ull be seen by the evidence presented by Dr. Jackson to the Dr. Mor- 
committee, published in the appendix, that his charges against Jy^g^^f ^^J^ 
Morton are proved to the fullest extent. JacksoBfor 

Thi-owing out of the case, as we must do, all Morton's own libel, and 

statements and those of the witnesses peculiarly within his control, ^^^^ ^^"^ ]^ 
, o ' 1 11 .• Ill- • , 1 ' • liow pencl- 

and referrmg to the declarations made by him against ins own in- j^g. 

terests, and to the testimony only of unimpeachable V7itnesses in 

relation to the introduction of this discovery, what are Morton's 

claims to the discovery of etherization ? 

1. Anterior to Dr. Jackson's communication to him, on Sep- Cojura.— 
tember 30th, 1846, Morton had no idea that ansesthesia could be 5®® ^- §• 

• • • Dana F 

produced by the inhalation of any vapour of any kind. See his Dana' Hay- 
statements to Dr. Paine, Dr. Heald, and others. den, Met- 

2. He did not go to Dr. Jackson's laboratory for the purpose calf,Wight- 
of procuring any means of producing any anaesthetic effect. See ^e^t','spear" 
the statements of Barnes, Mclntyre, and Dr. Jackson ; also Mor- Whitman, ' 
ton's own declarations to Dr. Paine and others. Gould. 

3. In the interview with Dr. Jackson, he made no allusion to ^-^^^ \^^did 

ether before he had received Dr. Jackson's communications. See designedly 

statements of Barnes and Mclntyre. After Dr. Jackson had an- withhold 

nounced to him his discovery, he did not then claim that he had ja^gonhis 

previously had the same idea. He did not say that he had experi- knowledge 

mented with ether, or show it at his office to any credible witness, andhispur- 

Nor did he claim these previous researches in his communications P?f-J' ^°5 
. , . . . r -i. ^vith good 

With ms patent solicitor. reason. 

4. Even after he had extracted the tooth without pain, there is (See the 
no evidence that he had any idea that ether could be employed in telegraph 
surgical operations. He had no idea of going to the Massachu- 
setts General Hospital until directed so to do by Dr. Jackson. Havden *p! 
See statements of Barnes and Mclntyre and his own declarations. 193. 

0. He did not take any responsibility in the early operations Co7itra.— 
with ether either at his own office or at the hospital. See depo- and ^^f^e 
sition of Wilson, &c. other snr- 

6. He was influenced by no philanthropic purpose in his efforts geons. 
to introduce the use of ether, but acted purely as a mercantile jackson^^* 
speculator. See the following extract from his circular, dated phnanthro- 
November 25, 1846 :* * I?— ^^*' 

" I am now fully prepared to dispose of Kcenses to use my in- Iq^^J, ^'J' 
vention and apparatus in any part of the country upon the follow- 3d, 25 per 
ing general terms : cent., kc. 

* Note this date, and the language " wi/ inveiuio^i,'^ and contrast it Avith p. 
523, of this report. 



534 



TERMS FOR DENTISTS, 



In cities 


of 


loO,000 


inhabitants. 


_ 


^200 for 


five years. 


6i 




50,000, 


and less than 150,000, 


150 


a 


a 




40,000. 




50.000, 


100 


cc 


(( 




80,000. 




40,000, 


87 


ii 


a 




20,000, 




30,000, 


75 


cc 


a 




10.000, 




20,000, 


62 


a 


S( 




5,000, 




10,000, 


50 


iC 



" Surgeons' licenses, for five years, 25 per cent, on all 
[ 34 ] charges made for performing operations wherein the dis- 
covery is used, &c., &c. " W. T. G. MORTON." 

Dr. Mor- What claim and merit has Morton in relation to this discovery, ex - 
ton's debt^gp|-|-|^^{- j-^g confided imphcitlyin Dr. Jackson's chemical and medi- 
son is sim- cal knowledge, and promptly and closely followed his instructions ? 
ply for his The undersigned, having now presented his own views as to 
oftnion j-}jg relative claims of the lv70 principal contestants for the honor 
\n^ ^"^Dr. ^^ ^^^ discovery, has still imposed upon him the task of correct- 
Morton's ing many of the errors both of fact and reasoning which appear 
own) that in the report of the majority. 

tio^n ^° \vas ^^^ undersigned deems it unnecessary for him to attempt to 
safe, and controvert the position of the majority report, enforced by so ex- 
that whattraonlinary an array of learned quotations, that this discovery of 
rifled^ ''^^J anaesthesia, for which the committee recommend so munificent a 
himself rew^ard, is, after all, one which has been known in all ages. It is 
was not an difficult, how^ever, to reconcile this view of the majority with the 
He^^had'^'a statement of Dr. John C. Warren, quoted by them a*s the very 
right to^igh^s^ medical authority. In a communication in the Boston 
consult Medical and Surgical Journal, this eminent surgeon says : " The 
books and discovery of a mode of preventing pain in surgical operations has 
and to take ^^^^ ^^ o])ject of strong desire among surgeons from an early 
suggestions period. In my surgical lectures I have almost annually alluded* 
andthereby to it, and stated the means which I have usually adopted for the 
Laveinvaii-'^^^^^^^^^^'' of this object. I have also freely declared, that, not- 
dated a pa- withstanding the use of very large doses of narcotic substances, 
tent in the this desideratum had never been satisfactorily obtained." The 
law? ^^ See statements of the majority report, as to the state of knowledge 
Curtis on current in the medical world in relation to the properties of sui- 
Patents, phuric ether, before Dr. Jackson's experiments and opinions were 
sec. 47-8. ]b:nowm, demand a more careful consideration ; for it is asserted 
that Dr. Jackson, previously to September 30, 1846, had discov- 
ered nothing that had not been known, or in print, in London, for 
'some years. The only explanation w^hich the undersigned can give 
for the extraordinary opinions expressed by the majority upon this 
point is, that they have not reflected that they have been considering 
the subject from the present stand-point, and that, in view of the 



535 

light which has been shed upon it within the last few years, they can 
form no correct idea of the obscurity which prevailed in early times- 

The report speaks of the fact, " as well known to students of 
chemistry and medicine, that the vapor of sulphuric ether inhaled 
for a short time allayed pain." It says that '^ Mr. Morton's 
studies enabled him to know all that was then known of this 
agent, then familiarly known as a nepenthe." It says "that the 
stupifying effects of ether were well known to students and scien- 
tific men." Dr. Warren is quoted to show that the effect of the 
inhalation of ether in producing exhilaration and insensibility has 
been understood for many years. It is argued that Mr. Morton, 
in May, 1845, was in possession of all the knowledge w^hich Dr. 
Jackson had upon this substance, as he then owned Pereira's Ma- 
teria Medica, which contains the following sentence : " Vapor of 
ether is inhaled in spasmodic asthma, chronic catarrh, and dyspep- 
sia, whooping cough, and to relieve the effects caused by the ac- 
cidental inhalation of chlorine." 

The undersigned conceives that the opinions and references 
above given convey a totally incorrect idea as to the former state 
of medical knowledge in relation to the properties of sulphuric 
ether. In the cases referred to in the work of Dr. Beddoes, ether was 
used as a diffusible stinRilus, or at most as an anodyne, like opium. 
It was not known as a nepenthe, but as a stimulant like alco- 
hol, and as a means of producing temporary drunkenness. Its [ «35 ] 
effects in producing stupor and unconsciousness were known, 
but these effects were regarded as exceedingly dangerous. Al- Yet Dr. 
though its effects in producing unconsciousness were known, there J^^^intains 
is not the slightest evidence that the belief any w^here obtained that the un- 
that it produced insensibility to pain. Nothing in Pereira's work conscious- 
indicates that ether produces paralysis of the nerves of sensation. ^.^^^ ^^^' 
It was simply recommended for the same purposes as alcohol and i^[^ inrolr- 
other diffusible stimuli are used ; alcohol having been formerly ed the 
the usual remedy for suffocation by chlorine. whole dis- 

There is nothing in Pereira's work which could have suggected ^^^^'^^' 
the application of ether for aneesthetic purposes, while the work, 
if it ever had been read by Morton, would have distinctly warned 
him from using ether. This author speaks of its inhalation as 
dangerous, and quotes a case of dangerous stupor as a caution 
against its use. The majority report loses sight of the fact that 
the use of ether to such an extent as to produce unconsciousness, 
is spoken of in all the medical boolcs as dangerous and occasion- 
ally fatal. Brande's Journal quotes a case of dangerous stupor 
of thirty hours' duration. Christison, in his work on Poisons, 
quotes the same case. Beck's Medical Jurisprudence, and Wood 
and Bache's U. S. Medical Dispensary, refer to cases of death 
produced on boys by inhalation of ether tr©m a bladder, the acci- 
dents in this case having occurred from breathing ether without 
admixture of air. All these books contain cautions against 
breathing ether. These medical authorities were arrayed against 



536 

AH this Dr. Jackson in his early attempts to introduce ether as an anses- 
Sifely left t^®tic agent, by a highly accomplished scientific man, the father 
to be col- of his student, Mr. Joseph Peabody. How can it be said that 
lated with Dr. Jackson was simply posted up in the current medical know- 
ty^T^ort^^" ^^^S^ upon this subject, when, in opposition to all medical authori- 
ties, he had de4:laj ed and proved by his own bold experiment that 
the inhalation of ether, to such an extent as to produce insensi- 
bility, and to such an extent as never had been voluntarily and 
delicerately attempted before, wt^s perfectly safe ; when he had 
discovered, what was never before suspected, the conditions upon 
which that safety depends, and had inferred and declared the con- 
viction, never before expressed by any other person, that the 
severest surgical operations could be performed without pain under 
its influence ? 

The views of the majority upon this point are in direct opposi- 
tion to the opinion of the great surgeon Yeipeau,* who, speaking 
in the French Academy upon the absurd claims which had been 
set up in France to a knowledge of the effects of ether, says 
" That which is new is the proposition of rendering patients upon 
whom we wish to operate wholly insensible to pain, by means of 
inspiration of ether. No person, to T^y knowledge, has ever 
made this proposition before Mr. Jackson, and no person before 
the dentist Morton had ever applied this means to a 
[ 36 ] diseased man." If such knowledge was possessed by 
the medical w^orld in relation to anaesthetic agents, and 
particularly sulphuric ether, as the majority report labors to 
demonstrate, then no discovery has been made by either party, 
and the proposition to give a national reward to any claimant for 
the discovery is an outrage ; then the acclamation which has re- 
sounded throughout the civilized world, and in every hospital and 
academy in Europe and America, that this is the greatest discov- 
.._ ? ery of the age, has been an ignorant, c:n idle clamor! 

An attempt is made by the majority to show that Dr. Jackson's 
acts and omissions, in the early stages of the public introduction 
of ether as an anaesthetic agent, render it improbable that he was 
the discoverer of etherization. They say, ^^From the 30th of 
September until the 2d day of January, during which time this 

* The majority are particularly unfortunate in their reference to M. Velpeau, 
whose position in this matter they evidently misapprehend, for although M. 
Yelpeau states in his Medicine Operatoire, Paris, 1839, tome 1, p. 32 : 

'< To avoid pain in surgical operations is a chimera which it is not permitted 
to pursue at this day. Cutting-instrument and pain in operative medicine, are 
two words which never are presented, the one without the other, to the minds 
of patients, and it is necessary to admit the association." — 

On this point M. Bouisson, in his work on anaesthetic agents, published in 
Paris, in 1850, says: ''Happily these decrees {points ^'arre'O, with which science 
was menaced, are not judgments without appeal, and M. Velpeau himself haa 
been one of the first to recognize it. The rigorous determination of the anaes- 
thetic properties of ether and of chloroform, the application which itwas pro- 
posed to make in surgery, have come to prove that progress was possible, and 
that a new way has opened itself for the welfare of humanity." — p. 48. 



537 

discovery passed successfully the experiment um crucis, Dr. Mor- 
ton wa^ in full and sole undisputed possession. It was not until 
sometime after the trial of the operation in a capital case had 
been made and proved successful, that a claim was publicly set 
up by any one to the honor, or share in the honor, of the discov- 
ery." Again, the majority report says: *^ During all this time 
Dr. Morton alone claimed the discovery and conducted the expe- 
riments^ &c., and not until all was complete and completely veri- 
iied, not until some time after the operation of the 2d January, 
1847, did any rival appear and publicly cJaim the discovery, or 
even a participation in it. Subsequently to this time claims were 
urged by Dr. Jackson and Wells." Nothing can be more at vari- See Chan- 
ance mth the facts than these statements. Dr. Hitchcock's affi- <iler'sdepo- 
davit shows that Dr. Jackson communicated the discovery to him, ^^q lan. 
and claimed the authorship, on the 3d of October, four days only guago of 
after the communication to Morton. Dr. Hitchcock says, that "R.^:{^^-|?^^ 
"At this interview. Dr. Jackson related to him the circumstances ^^^ ciiit>" 
under which he had communicated the discovery to Dr. W. T. G. Oct.27jpp. 
Morton, and also gave his opinion relative to the safe and judi- 258. 
cious demonstration of the new agent. Mr. Henry Sumner, in a 
letter to Dr. Jackson,' of March 16, 1852, says : '^I can from my 
own knowledge state that you did claim the discovery of etheri- 
zation from the first public announcement of it. Indeed, your 
statements to me, previous to this announcement, were such as to 
induce in my mind the idea that you were over- sanguine in regard 
to the results of your discovery." Dr. Jackson's claims to the ^ g^^ j^^^ 
discovery were asserted daily and constantly, not by newspaper note. On 
advertisements, it is true, but in every mode which was consistent 27th Oct., 
with his personal dignity and self-respect. ofthescS 

At that time no formal public reclamation was necessary on tific men of 
Dr. Jackson's part. Dr. Jackson's claim to this discovery* was Boston, :it 
not denied. Morton and his associates then simply exaggerated J^^ ^^^ 
the merit of his connection with the verification. On or about jaekson 
the middle of November, Dr. Jackson proceeded to take the most Icneiv some- 
formal and deliberate course for asserting and proving his claim ^^^^^ ^?^"^ 
to this discovery, before a meeting of eminent scientific, legal and ^f andhe 
medical gentlemen, convened for that purpose at his laboratory, was qnes- 
The occurrences at that meeting are thus described by Charles G. tioned_^ee 
Loring, Esq., well known as one of the most eminent practition- ^^^,^ ^^l{^ 
ers of law in Boston, in the following letter addressed to the mooy, and 
undersigned: Di- J« M. 

Boston, March 26, 1852. ^^^ers. 

"Upon recurring to a memorandum-book kept by the clerks in 
my office, I find that an entry is there made of my attending a ^ ^^ ^!" 
meeting at Dr. Jackson's house in November, 1846. I have a tfve^7 ^that 
very distinct recollection of the event, although I should not no such let- 
otherwise have been able to designate the month or year. Al that ter was in 
meeting were present Dr. John C. Warren, Dr. Ware, Dr. before^^he 

Gay, Mr. Joseph Peabody, Francis B, Hayes, Esq., aad [ 37 ] committee. 



538 

^TMs gen- ixiysejf, and I think that Dr. Hale was also present. I understood 
attorney of^^^^ it was ealled in pursuance of the advice "which I had given in 
Dr.Jackson conference with Mr. Hayes^ that, as the subject was one involving 
summed up momentous consequences, and concerning which it was desirable 
^on's riihts ^^ Proceed advisedly and safely, and one which from its nature 
in a propo- required the opinions of scientific gentlemen, it was expedient to 
sitiontoDr. have the matter submitted to their consideration in our presence, 
^fJ^°^ v*^ that we micrht advise with intellig-ence and confidence. 

allow nmi ^ai •t-.ti ^ i -w r- ^ ' i • 

twenty- five At the meetmg Dr. Jackson made a tull statement of his claims 

per cent, and of the circumstances which led to his alleged discovery, and 

on his pro- q^ those which he represented as having taken place between him 

tent. See ^^^ ^^f- Morton, and whick induced him io make an experiment ; 

p. 101. but whether this statement was in writing or verbal, aided by 

written memoranda, I cannot tell; though my impression is that 

that^^^^he^t was mainly in writing. He did exhibit evidence in support of 

shouldhave his claims, all of which I cannot recall to mind. But I remember 

written the that Mr. Peabody made a very minute and convincing statement 

referred to. ^^ circumstances that occurred while he was in Dr. Jackson's 

office, and that another young man made one of what took place 

when Mr. Morton came to bring an instrument to Dr. Jackson for 

inhaling, if my memory is faithful. 

" I cannot state how far the other gentlemen were satisfied, but 
my own conviction was entire that Dr. Jackson was entitled, as 
between him and Mr. Morton, to the entire merit of the discovery, 
and no intimation of a contrary opinion was suggested at the 
meeting. I inferred that the other gentlemen were of the same 
opinion, if they did not express it at the time, and I have ever 
since acted confidently as the legal adviser of Dr. Jackson on that 
behalf w^henever called upon by him." 

Taking The undersigned has examined a paper, stated by Dr. Jackson 
possession ^^ }^^ ^ memorandum or brief of the communication made by him 
priate ^i^ ^^'^ meeting. In this the discovery is claimed by Dr. Jackson 

phrase. to its full extent. What course could Dr. Jackson have pursued 
The open fQj. taking^ a more formal and absolute possession of this discovery 

QTJQ snip ^ 1 ^ ' V 

possession ^^^^ ^^ one above described ? This letter of Mr. Loring shows how 
was in Mor- purely fanciful is the hypothesis of the majority report, that Dr. 
ton. No Jackson had not, prior to the operations of December 1st, "fully 
to " toL^^^^ ^P ^^^ niind to claim the discovery." 

possession'' No such formal claim was necessary on Dr. Jackson's part ; for, 
was mani- in the first communications made in relation to this discovery be- 
lt was quite ^^^^ ^^y scientific bodies, Dr. Jackson was distinctly recognized 
safe, and as the author. The following letter of Hon. Edward Everett, 
apparently submitted to the committee, but which has never been published 
S do*M^ (a letter to the same effect, presented to a former committee, hav- 
ing been "lost" by the chairman), shows conclusively how com- 
pletely in error the majority are in asserting that Dr. Morton was 
in sole and undisputed possession of the discovery: 



539 

Cambridge, 2^st October, 1851. 

"Dr. C. T. Jackson— Dear Sir : I readily comply with your ^"^ ^^^^^^ 
request that I would furnish you with a statement of my impressions ^^ll having 
as to the discovery of etherization. I have always considered it heard Dr. 
to have been made by you. My first knowledge of this discovery Jackson's ^ 
was derived from an account of it given at a meeting of the ^^^^^^J". ^^^ 
American Academy of Arts and Sciences in Boston, on the 3(1 contra, «'al- 
November, 1846, by Dr. Henry J. Bigelow, of that city. Dr. ways con- 
Bigelow, after describing the dental operations performed by Dr. ^^^^^^ jjjg 
Morton undej- the influence of the newly discovered * com- recollection 

pound,' (as it was then called,) stated that Dr. Morton [ 38 JofDr.Bige- 
had derived his knowledge of the substance used from you. tur'e will be 

" The next day I had occasion to deliver an address at the corrected 
opening of the Medical College ; and in preparing that address by Dr. B.-s 
for publication, I appended a note to it, from which I extract the testimony 
following sentences : g, c^iji" 

" ' I am not sure that, since these remarks w^ere delivered, a missioner, 
discovery has not been announced, w4iich fully realizes the pre- P- 319. Int. 
diction of the text, I allude to the discovery of a method of pro- ^^'^ 
ducing a state of temporary insensibility to pain, by the inhalation 
of a prepared vapor. A full account of this discovery is given in 
a paper by Dr. Henry J. Bigelow, in the Boston Medical and 
Surgical Journal, for the 18th of November, 1846. Dr. Bigelow 
ascribes its first suggestion to Dr. Charles T. Jackson, and its ap- 
plication, under his advice, for the purpose of mitigating pain, to 
Dr. W. T. G. Morton, both of Boston.' 

" Such was the nature and the source of the impressions formed 
by me at that time, relative to the discovery of this w^onderfui 
ansesthetic agent. My address was published at the request of 
the medical class, and had, I suppose, the usual circulation. I 
believe it was the first non-professional publication in which 
etherization was alluded to. I am not aware that the manner in 
which I stated the facts of the discovery was objected to for sev- 
eral weeks ; when a controversy relative to priority unhappily 
arose. In that controversy, I have neither taken nor wish to take 
any part. I have read several publications on both sides of the 
question ; and several have appeared which I have not read. 
Nothing has come to my knowledge which shakes my original 
impressions as above stated. 

" I remain, dear sir, with much regard, 

'*Very truly, yours, 

''A true copy. "(Signed), EDWARD EVERETT." 

'^Attest, Dr. A. D. W. Martin." 

The majority have presented some purely original reasons for 
the assertion that Dr. Jackson, until the first capital operation, had 
no fixed confidence in the success of the new anaesthetic agent. 
The chief merit of originality is in the invention of the facts upon 



540 

which these reasons are founded ; for it will appear that they 
exist simply in the imagination of the majority. The undersigned 
particularly refers to the comments of the majority upon the 
course which it is asserted he pursued in relation to two letters 
sent to M. E. de Beaumont, announcing the discovery. The re- 
port says, in substance, that Dr. Jackson, after he had nearly 
As to this, made up his mind to claim the discovery as his own, on the 18th 
f ^^ ^k "^"if t ^^ November, enclosed to De Beaumont a paper with directions 
possible ^0 fi^s it? b^t ^ot to break the seal until he directed. " This pa- 
motive per," it is said, "its seal and custody, showed that Dr. Jackson 
could Dr. i^i^e'^Y llow to save a secret and yet preserve the evidence of dis- 
his -' sealed '^o'^'^O' 5 that he hastened to take a formal contingent? possession 
packet" of this discovery in Europe, before he witnessed, even as a spec- 
except as tator, a single operation under the influence of the new ansethetic 
by^Sfe ma- agent. It seems that he had not yet fully made up his mind to 
jority? His claim the discovery. He wanted further verification before he 
excuse took the steps of announcing it as his own. He therefore directed 
i?^that"he t^^ letter, making claim to the discovery, io be deposited, sealed^ 
-was con- in the Academy, not to be opened until he should direct." 
stantly dis- " The success of the first of December removed all doubt. He 

^JJI^k^^> therefore wrote the last letter on that date, directing M. E. de 
newtruths'^ -, ■, ^ ^ .. ^ 

&c. But Beaumont to open the sealed packet." 

now Dr. Dr. Jackson's statement of the facts connected with this corres- 
f^^^d^t"^^^ pondence is as follows : — After writing his letter, dated 

t?j^give"he [ 39 ] November 13, he took it to Robert H. Eddy, Morton's 
world some solicitor and co-partner. He declared to Eddy his inten- 

^^P^^fJ^^™ tion of appealing to the French Academy of Sciences, and told 
truth." hi^ that he intended to send the letter which he then exhibited to 
Whyshould E. de Beaumont, for that purpose. R. H. Eddy, and Caleb Eddy, 
he seal his ^he father of the former, begged Dr. Jackson not to send his let- 
he^ had^ for t^^? saying that they would "do what is right" towards him. 
yearsfbefore By their solicitations. Dr. Jackson was induced to delay sending 
fully arriY- ^he letter for half a month, or until the next steamer sailed. Pre- 
truth ^ ^ viously to the sailing of the steamer of the first of December, Dr. 
Jackson called again upon Mr. Eddy, and showed him three let- 
ters, which he intended to send to France by the steamer. Two 
When and addressed to Monsieur E. de Beaumont, one dated November 13, 
where? Let and the other dated December 1 ; the third addressed to the King 
the mem- of France, Louis Phillippe. Dr. Jackson states that Mr. Eddy 
Committ^^ and his father replied, " Send away as soon as you please ; we 
be asked to -^^cwred it hy the last steamer : you are too late ; some one has 
say if there been put to sleep in France, and in England too, by this time." 
was any ^ j)^^ Jackson immediately sent the two letters addressed to M. E. 
Again it is ^^ Beaumont, enclosed in one envelope or seal, and desired M. E. 
asked, is de Beaumont to communicate their contents to the Academy of 
tWs there- Sciences. 

n^nority or ^^ °^^ ^- the letters — that of 13th of November, 1846 — he de- 
evidence ? scribed his discovery, and requested that a commission should be 



rom 



541 

appointed to test it in France. He declared the discovery to be ' induced r 
his own, and that he had induced a dentist in Boston to make use ^J^' games 
of it in preventing the pain incident to the extraction of teeth, and Mcln- 
and that he had requested Dr. Warren to test its power in pre- tyre agree 
venting the pain of a capital operation at the Massachusetts Gen- ^^f^^^^ ^^' 
eral Hospital. came to Dr. 

In the letter dated December 1st, he communicated to M. E. Jackson 
de Beaumont the fact that claims for a patent in France would be ^^^^^J'^f* 
presented by R. H. Eddy, the co-partner of Morton, and he de- resulted' 
sired the Academy to take such action as would frustrate that from _ that 
scheme. In this letter he expressed no desire to secure a patent ^^^^^^^^^^^ 
for himself, but desired that his rights, as a discoverer, should be whollyfi 
protected in such manner as might be proper. He did not express Morton. 
a wish that the letters should be placed in a sealed packet. But ^^^ ^^^ 
M. Milne Edwards, one of the physiologists of the Academy, and stipulated 
a perpetual secretary, to whom M. E. de Beaumont show^ed Dr. before this 
Jackson's letters, erroneously supposing that Dr. Jackson desired ^^'^^ ^^® 
to secure a patent in France, advised that both letters be placed jj^ve, first 
in paquet cachet e. 10 per cent. 

These statements of Dr, Jackson are confirmed by the follow- ^^^ *^^^ 
ing letter from M. Elie de Beaumont, which has been examined on^paten^s] 
by the imdersigued : See Eddy, 

p. 286. 

[Trarisiation.] 

"Paris, January 3, 1847. 

" My dear Sir : I have received duly the letter which you haa -^^^^ ^^jj^'i 
the goodness to do me the honor to write to me from Boston, the jy^^ j >g ^}^_ 
1st of December last; also that of an older date, w^hich was en-ject, as un- 
closed with it. I have read with lively interest the expose of the ^^^^^^^^^ 
important discovery with which you have enriched the art of gg^^^j^Qj^^f 
healing ; your double letter arrived on Sunday, the 20th Decern- was a pat- 
ber. My first movement was to communicate your discovery to Q^^- 
the Academy of Sciences at its ^ssion of 21st December, and for 
that purpose I communicated it to one of the perpetual secreta- 
ries, M. FiourenSj who is one of our most distinguished physiolo- 
gists, and who comprehended at once its importance. 

" By an accidental circumstance, the correspondence ^ Contrast 

could not be read that day, which hindered the communi- [ 40 ] hls^pieten- 
cation from being read. During the interval between this sions here- 

session and that of the Monday following, (28th December,) I mbefore 
carried your letter to be read to another of our physiologists of ^^^^^^^® ' 
the Academy, M. Milne Edwards. This last made the observa- 
tion that your object being to take out a patent for invention, it 
was necessary to omit reading the letter to the Academy, because, 
if it were read, your method would be printed in the Comptes 
Rendus and in the journals, and, according to the laws, so soon 
as a method is printed, it cannot become the subject of a patent ; 



542 

consequently, in order to preserve all your rights, with the dates 
of the arrival of your letters in Europe, I have enclosed tliis 
double letter in a sealed packet, (paquet cachete,) which I de- 
posited with the Secretary of the Institute. This packet bears 
for subsciiption : ^Sealed packet relative to a Physiological and 
Two Medico- chirurgical discovery, sent by Br. Jackson, of Boston, 
mombs^af- United States, and deposited in his name by M. Elie de Beaa- 
ter^ ^^^'-fjio7it, 28th of December, 1846," and it has been mentioned in 
and six^h^se terms in the session of 28th December, and it has also been 
weeks after noticed in the Comptes Rendus of that session, which will be pub- 
^^™P^®^?, lished on the 3d of January. Your letter, enclosed in the packet, 
^'^ ^ "■ bears veiy distinctly the post-mark of the day of its arrival in 
Paris (20th .December.) The depositing of similar packets is 
very frequent, both by members of the Academy and by other 
persons who wish to secure priority of a discovery previous to di- 
vulging it. 

" When you desire, we can ask the opening of the packet and 
the publication of its contents ; but I ought to inform you that 
the Academy has nothing to do with the delivery of patents. 

" Accept, I pray you, the assurance of my distinguished senti- 
ments of esteem. Your affectionate servant and friend, 

" (Signed) L. ELIE DE BEAUMONT. 
" Paris, January 6, 1847. 

'' To Dr. C. T. Jackson, Boston, Massachusetts." 
Post-mark, January 7, 1847. 
Contra : 
The com- What act or omission, on the part of Dr. Jackson, can be re- 
2g*"epeat! ferred to, to prove the extraordinary statement of the majority — 
ed declara- that he did not claim the discovery — except his refusal to trumpet 
tions that forth his claims to the discovery, as his adversary had done, in 
not leThis advertisements in the papers ? His course in this respect was 
name be such as suited the feehngs of delicacy of a gentleman and a man. 
connected of science. He expressly refused to give Morton a certificate, 
ton's d^s-^^^ next morning after the operation was performed by the latter, 
cov'ry; and that the application of ether was safe. Not because he had any 
the omis- doubt of it — for he had assured Morton, in the most unequivocal 
■^*^'^^^'j^^p* manner, the day before, in the presence of two witnesses, of its 
himself safety, and the simple fact that Morton applied to him for the cer- 
safely out tificate of safety, shows that this application was founded upon 
*^^d 7^^t ^^' J^c^son's previous assurances of safety — but for the obvious, 
length ap-^^^ most natural reason, that he did not wish to figure in Mor- 
peared as a ton*s quack advertisements. 

.spectator at Hqw different from the notions of the majority upon this mat- 
field house" ^^^ ^^'^ ^^^ following sentiments, uttered by a distinguished peer 
when the of France, in a country where charlatanry and ignorant preten- 
discoyery sion rarely find sympathy and support. 

established ^^ ^ discussion which took place in the Chamber of Peers, at 
in value, the sitting of June 30, upon an article prohibiting medical adver- 



543 

tisements, M. le Compte Beugnot remarked as follows : ** It is The pas 
alleged, that, by the article under discussion, important disco ve- j^^rench ^^ 
ries, such as that of vaccination, would be prevented from count's 

being made known. I do not know what occurred at the [ 41 ] speech is of 
epoch when vaccination was discovered ; but this I well ^^ ff^utter- 

know, that, for all the great discoveries of w*hich we have been ed. It es- 
the witnesses in our own times, their authors have not had re- tablishesno 
course to any of those means of publishing which we wish to pro- .^"^^^^i 
scribe. I ask if the illustrious Laennec has employed newspaper nothing 
notices and advertisements to sprend and make known his great short of ab- 
discovery of auscultation ? / asky also, if M. Jackson, who ^^^^ ject subser- 
just immortalized his name by the discovery of etherization, ^fl^ foreign title 
em,pleyed these means to spread and introduce among us the dis- could give 
covery which he has made ? If Dr. Civiale, for lithotrity, if M. ^* ^^^ ^®^" 
Pelletier, for the discovery of sulphate of quinine, have employed bXTSd 
newspaper notices and advertisements in the public journals, and how does 
all those other means which we wish to proscribe ? No, no ! ^^i^? which 
They have not had recourse to these means, which are resorted to ^yj^ence ™ 
only by charlatans." find its way 

The majority drew inferences unfavorable to Dr. Jackson's into its 
claims from his unfortunate connection with Mr. Morton in a ' ■^^^^^'^ 
patent for the application of this discovery. Dr. Gay, in his state- 
ment, thus remarks upon this transaction : — 

"An impression unfavorable to Dr. Jackson's just claims has 
arisen in some minds, in consequence of his signing a petition for 
letters patent, in w^hich Mr. Morton is represented as a joint dis- 
coverer with him. It is well known to Dr. Jackson's friends, 
that he always regarded the position of one engaged in scientific 
pursuits as a profession — as an elevated one ; and deemed it a sort 
of impropriety to procure letters patent for the practical applica- 
tion of a scientific discovery. He himself never w^ould have pro- 
cured one merely for his own pecuniary benefit, in a case so im- 
portant to the interests of humanity. 

" The facts are these ; Mx. Morton applied to a solicitor of 
patents to take one out for himself. The opinion of th^ solicitor 
was, that the patent law9 would permit Mr. Morton to take out a ^l *^ ^^^^^ 
patent on account of the part he had in the new application; and sworn evi- 
he further stated to Dr. Jackson that Mr. Morton would assuredly ^ence of 
take out one in his own name, and he urgently advised him to unite ^^ Sent 
with Mr. Morton in applying for a patent, to be issued in Mr. solicitor, p. 
Morton's name, in order that his own rights to the discovery might 397. 
be recognized in the first paper relating to the new application of 
either filed at the Patent Office. He observed, if Mr. Morton 
should take out a patent himself, and thus procure a kind of re- 
cognition at the Patent Office of his having been the discoverer, 
he might afterwards refer to this recognition in proof of it. The 
solicitor remarked to Dr. Jackson, that, should he take out the 



544 

patent mth Mr. Morton, he might make over to him his own share 
of it, and that he would not then be a partner with him in holding 
it. As Br. Jackson had great confidence in the solicitor, both as 
a friend and in his professional capacity, he, after long hesitation, 
consented to the plan proposed. There is no doubt whatever in 
the minds of Dr. Jackson's friends, that he consented to it for the 
sake of preventing Mr. Morton from holding a legal instrument 
in his possession, with his own name alone in it as a discoverer.'' 

This is an Dr. Jackson's own statement in regard to this transaction, in 
ir^amous ^iis letter to Baron Humboldt, although resting solely upon his 
most re- o^^'^^^'ord, bears strong evidence of probability. He says : '^Find- 
spectable ing that I was in great danger of losing the credit of my discov- 
gentleman, ^j-y^ j ^r^g foolish enough to listen to the advice of the patent 
^gg^ g^g^jQ. solicitor, Eddy, whom I did not at that time suspect of being in- 
iaed under terested Vv^ith Morton in his attempt to rob me of my discovery : 
oath. and by his pretended friendly advice I allowed my name, under 

the following protest, to be used in procuring letters patent. 
This document I found was not the one that Mr. Eddy 
[ 42 ] actually sent to the Patent Office, and that discovery led 
to an investigation proving that Mr. Eddy was a co-part- 
ner with Morton.* 

" The protest dictated by me, and written in my presence by 
Mr. Eddy, was as follows : 

" ' Dr. Jackson is extremely unwdlling^o take out a patent for 
anything applicable to the relief of human suffering : but, in order 
to secure the honor of this discovery, and to conform to the laws 
of his country in transmitting his right to another, consents,' &c. 
" Under his usual power of attorney, Mr. Eddy altered this as 
follows, and without my kno^'ing it at the time I signed it : 'Dr. 
Jackson, willing to benefit Mr. W. T. G. Morton, assigns to him 
his rights and interest, and requests the commissioner of patents 
See Eddy's j.^ ^g^^^ ^^le patent in the name of W. T. G. Morton,' or words 
p. 397. ' ^^ that -effect. Trusting that my injunctions had been faithfully 
carried out in the papers, I signed them without reading them, 
and that was the origin of the whole mystery of my name having 
been associated with that of Mr. Morton in this patent so impro- 
perly obtained." 

The strong fact which confirms this statement, and furnishes a 
motive for the conduct of the patent solicitor, otherwise inexpli- 
cable, is, that the records of the Patent Office show that Mr. Eddy 
had the interest in the patent of which Dr. Jackson speaks. [See 
Appendix.] 

The undersigned believes that he has now established, in direct 
contradiction of the assertion of the majority, that Dr. Jackson's 
own conduct and bearing, in reference to this discovery and its 

*See annexed copy of an assignment, from TV. T. G. Morton to R. H. Eddy 
of one-fourth of his rights in a patent then about to be procured. 



545 

verification and presentation before the public, from the 30th of . H^ " *«- 
September, 1846, down to the time that it was fully established, il]}ZbeX 
prove that he was, and did believe himself to be, the discoverer, ^tscover^jr" 
It is still necessary to controvert one position of Dr, Jackson's of Morse's 
adversaries, — that he had not full faith in the efficiency of his dis- ^nd^ haTh ' 
covery. This position rests solely upon the often quoted state- Mved early 
ment of Mr. Caleb Eddy. Mr. Eddy, after relating a conversa- enough, 
tion with Dr. Jackson, remarks: "I said to him, *Dr. Jackson, ^'^'^i?, ^'^ 
did you know at such a time, that after a person had inhaled ether, disputed 
his flesh could be cut with a knife without his experiencing any steam with 
pain? He replied, 'No; nor Morton either. He is a reckless ^^^*5^?>.^'^** 
man for using it as he has: the chance is that he will kill some- wi^thFranlc- 
body yet.'" lin. 

It must be remembered that Caleb Eddy is the father of the ^, p , , 
patent solicitor, who induced Dr. Jackson to enter into the patent, Eddyis^ot 
and who was a partner of Morton in the sale of patent licenses ; impeacbed, 
that, at the time Mr. Caleb Eddy's letter was written, the pros- ^^d is 
pect of vast fortunes to be realized by the sale of patent rights, ^epmach.^^^ 
had beeii destroyed by Dr. Jackson's course. The younger 
Eddy's conduct, in mveigling Dr. Jackson into the patent arrange- 
ment, had broken up all friendship which formerly existed between 
the Messers. Eddy and D\ Jackson. Whatever Mr. Eddysays 
is spoken under the influence of strong personal animosity. But 
little weight can, therefore, be given to the narrative of a conver- 
sation given by one whose prejudice would have led him to re- 
member only what was against Dr. Jackson's interest. More- 
over, it is impossible that Dr. Jackson could have made such ad- 
missions against his own rights, when he went to Eddy's house 
for the very purpose of remonstrating against Morton's being 
connected with the patent. That Dr. Jackson regarded Morton 
as a reckless man, — that he was afraid Morton would kill some- 
body on account of his recklessness in the mode of admin- 
istering ether, — that he regretted that he had entrusted [ 43 ] 
the verification of his discovery to such a man, — is doubt- 
less true; but that he had no doubt of the efficacy of this agent 
in the severest cases of surgical practice, and regarded it as per- 
fectly safe, when properly administered, is proved by abundant 
testimony. Mr. Peabodysays: '*I returned to Dr. Jackson's 
laboratory about a week alter he had communicated his discovery 
to Mr. Morton, and since that time have been constantly with 
him; and I can most pesitively state that not at any time has he 
shown the least w*ant of confidence in the importance of his ap- 
plication ; and not for a moment hid he undervalue it, nor has he 
ceased to assert his claims as the sole discoverer." 

The following letter of Mr. Henry Sumner, a respectable gen- 
tleman, never before published, is perfectly conclusive as to Dr. 
Jackson's faith in this application : 
35 



546 

"Boston, ^jor*/ 10, 1849. 

Dear Sir : Calling at your office a day or two after you had 
comnmnicated your discovery to Mr. Morton, of the use of sui- 
This is phuric ether as an agent for destroying pain in the extractioa of 
merely the ^^^^^^ ^^^ some days before its application in surgical operations 
foio^^wWchat the Massachusetts General Hospital, I met Mr. Morton there, 
Morton had who wished to ascertain from you some means of disguising the 
^%. ^y^^l ©dor of the ether. I distinctly recolleet hearing you, at the same 
interview, affirm, with great confidence and enthusiasm, that the 
severest surgic&l operations could be performed upon patients un- 
der the influence of that agent, without giving them the slightest 
pain. This, of course, struck me with surprise ; but many days 
did not elapse before your most sanguine expectations were real- 
ized, and the world astonished with one of the most remarkable 
discoveries of the age. I trust you will ere long receive the award of 
merit due such distinguished service rendered to suffering humanity. 
"I am, respectfully and sincerely, your friend, 

^* HENRY SUMNER. 
*^ Dr. Charles T. Jackson, Boston." 

The only answer required to the letter of Mr. Edward Warren, 
published in the minority report in support of the position now 
controverted, is the following extract from the deposition of Mr. 
Wilson, given in May, 1842 : 

*' Mr. Edward Warren, the author of a pamphlet supporting 
Morton's claims to the discovery, was directly interested in Mor- 
ton's patent. There was a contract in writing between them, by 
the terms of which it was provided that Warren should receive ^n 
per cent, of the proceeds of all sales under the patent. The orig- 
ijial contract I copied myself, at Morton's request, at a time when 
a large sum of money was expected to be realized from the patent." 
The majority have attempted to discredit Dr. Jackson's state- 
ments of the incidents of his early experiments, by declaring that 
See the " each successive letter written by him, in relatioa to these ex- 
conclusive periments, states the case more strongly than the last preceding ; 
reviews in ^^^^ ^j^^^ ^^le facts superadded in the latter letters are these which 
report.^ alone give novelty and importance to his experiments." This the 
undersigned conceives they have wholly failed to prove. 

In order to make out their case^ and to show that Dr. Jackson 
observed in his first experiments no more than had been stated as 
having occurred in Dr. Thornton's practice, they made him speak 
of a catarrh having been relieved by ether ; when, in fact. Dr. 
Jackson has in no case spoken of having suffered a catarrh, 
[ 44 ] but a severe and painful inflammation of the throat caused 
by the action of chlorine. 
There is not the slightest ground for the assertion that any im- 
portant facts have been added since his earlier statements. In 
Dr. Jackson's letter to Mr. J. H. Abbot, of May 19th, describing 
his first experiments, he speaks of "a cessation of all pain, and 



547 

the loss of all feeling of external objects^ a little while before and 
after the loss of entire consciousness." This was omitted in his 
very brief letter to Dr. Gay, of May 20th, 1847. That this was 
accidentally omitted, is proved by Dr. Gay's pamphlet, to which 
the letter is appended. 

Dr. Gay says, " The history of this discovery has been derived 
from Dr. Jackson himself .'^'^ 

In recounting the experiments Dr. Gay says : Afterwards, still 
suffering from the chlorine, he continued the experiment to such 
an extent as to produce complete general insensibility. Full relief 
from the suffering was experienced before he became unconscious, 
and it continued for a short time after the insensibility had passed 
away." The fa«t is. Dr. Jackson's letter was not so full as his 
oral statements to that eminent physician had been. All that can 
be alleged in relation to these statements is that Dr. Jackson, like 
other men of quick intuition, may not always give a full statement Qu, Was 
and the exact order of his reasonings in arriving at his results ; i^ likely 
and, like La Place, may by some persons be thought to have f^fj^^ ^p^e- 
jumped at conclusions, the steps of which he supposed all men of pared letter 
science would perceive. All that Dr. Jackson adds in his letter should stop 
to Baron Von Humboldt, are the steps of his reasoning, which he f^n^lpeten^ 
has often been told by others he ought to explain. No new facts sions of the 
are alleged by him as to his experiments upon himself, but only a writer ? 
more minute and detailed analysis of them, and the philosophical 
explanation of his deductions. Whatever may have been the pro- 
ccvss of his reasoning, the grand fact remains, that he did form these 
deductions, and that solely in consequence of his having formed 
and promulgated those deductions, suffering humanity now rejoices 
in the precious boon of anaBsthesia. 

The majority refers to the report of the Massachusetts General 
Hospital as conclusively settling this question of discovery. They 
say : *' It was one in every way proper to be tried and settled by 
intelligent men, a jury of the vicinage ; and it was so tried by a 
most appropriatetribunal, the Trustees of the Massachusetts Gene- 
ral Hospital, at which the first public exhibition of this pain- 
destroying power was made. The question of discovery w^as tried 
before these men, trustees of a scientific corporation, to' whom Dr. 
Jackson was well known ; and this board, composed of men whose 
names would do honor to any scientific institution, presently after 
the discovery, near the time and at the place where it occurred, 
gave, by a unanimous voice, its honor to Dr. Morton." 

The undersigned, aware of the weight which had been given to See the 
the pretended investigation of these (gentlemen, — none of them, it ^.^'^'^^^"?" 

• . r ' T 1 1 1 1 • tious of the 

IS true, men ot science or medical knov.uedge, or possessing any surgeons of 
fitness for such an investigation, but highly respectable merchants that hospi- 
and financial men, and doubtless in every way worthy of the trust ^'^^' 
imposed upon them, that of taking care of the money affairs of ^"o letter 
the corporation,— addressed to each of the trustees a letter, of ^^^^ ^^Bo^- 
which the following is a copy : ditch. 



548 

*HadMr. 
wnH^V^p" '' House of Representatives. 

hospital re- rxr 7 ■ ^ n -7 io--» 

port be Washington^ Aprils V^o2. 

would have - Siji : Having learned that you ^vere one of the Trustees 

Dn^'j/^e-L -^'^ ] ^'^^^ Massachusetts General Hospital in 1847-'6, I am 
cognised" desirous of obtaining from you some information which 

the arhitra- bears upon the ether controversyj now under consideration by a 
tion of the ggjg^i- committee in Cono-ress. 

committee- ,, -i-...„ .. ="^1 - ^ ^ ^ ^u 

by obeying VV'iil you allow me, thereiore. request to your aswers to the 

its sum- following questions ? 

nwnstotes- a -^^^ ^^^ ^-^.^ aware that the Trustees of the Mafsachusetts 
appearing G-eneral Hospital were authorized by Dr. Jackson to sit as um- 
before it. pires in the controversy between him and W. T. G. Morton, as to 
(See hospi- ■[-j.g discovery of etherization t^ 

pp. 46.^47.) " ^i^ y<^^j ^* 0^^ ^^ '^^^ trustees of the hospital, examine the 
Qz^frj'.' Had statements or evidences in behalf of Dr. Jackson*s claims to the 
the repon discovery of etherization, and has he at any time appeared before 
able^^^ojMl ^^ personally, or by counsel, to support his claims ?t 
Dr. J. have " Are you aware that any such investigation has been made by 
denied the ^j^g trustees of the hospital as to give a judicial character to their 
^^^^"*^f decision in relation to the ether controversy ?! 
pires ? " Have you, or not, considered N. I. Bowditch, Esq., alone 

tReportpesponsible for so much of the hospital reports of 1847, as relates 
sho^s that ^^ ^^^^ ^^i^gj, controversy ?$ 
there wa^ cc t ' 4-c ^\ 

an author- " I am, verv respectfiilly, 

ized com- " Your obedient servant, 

Sie^whlh '' EI^WARD STANLY, 

Dr. J. and '■ Memher of Select Comraiitee on the ether question.-' 

c o unsellor 

^^^sjilarly 'j'j^^ answers of these gentlemen are given in the Appendix. It 
( H s pital appears distinctly, from these answers, that the trustees of the 
report pp. hospital were never authorized by Dr. Jackson to sit es umpires 
46, 4< .) ^ the controversy ; that Dr. Jackson did not appear before them 
C o'ngress. personally or by counsel ; that no such examination was made by 
did every them as to give a judicial character to their decision in relation to 
iii<ii7^d^^the ether controversy; that the considered IS. I. Bowditch, Esq., 
^e?amine ^^^ ^^ ^^^ trustees, alone responsible for so much of the^hospital 
the claims report of 1847, as related to the ether controversy. It aj pears, 
or eyiden- then, that this jury of the vicinage consisted of only one person, 
ether 'case^^^*^^^ subsequent acts have stamped him as Morton's chief attor- 
or the au-ney and agent. 

thorized The undersigned deems it unnecessary to expose in detail the 

'^"^^^^^ many inconsistencies and errors of his report, although it is pro- 

i Mr. S. could have seen by hospital report, pp. 45, 46, and particularly p. 47, 
a distinct disarowal of anyjudicial power. 

§ Qurry. How many members of the House are usually engaged in drawing 
up a single report? and which of the Hospital trustees has questioned the report 
of the chairman of their committee ? 



commit- 
te 



549 

per to inquire whether any weight is to be given to his opinions ^i'* S. 
and statement s. ^ posite page 

* As the report of the majority of the committee attaches great importance to |- x „ 
the report purporting to be that of the trustees of the Massachuseets General 3\: letter 
Hospital, and adopts its " conclusions ; " and as the letters of all the other trus- , ^ , . 

tees leave Mr. Bowditch solely responsible for everything relating to the ether YTg „„ tYus- 
controversy contained in that report, a few of the many inconsistencies, contra- , J none 
dictions, and absurdities into which he has fallen are subjoined, in order to shoAv ' ^-eceiv- 
how far he possessed the impartiality, knowledge and judgment requisite for his i ' -^ -«• ' 
seJf-assumed office of arbitrator, and to what degree of respect his " conclusions " T>^^Jii.^v 
are entitled, whom it as- 

The sole grounds on which Mr. Bowditch's Report claims the discovery for ^^^^^ Y\A% 
Mr. Morton, are his jpretended " seehing for the discovery ^^^ and the acknowledged (,j^,(,^iai. -^e 
fact of his first administering ether to a patient in the operation of extracting a • , remem- 
tooth. He adopts, as <' in accordance with his views," the declaration of Dr. i^^j-g^ ^g^g 
George Hay ward, one of the surgeons of the hospital, that <•' Dr. Jackson first -^yj-j^ten af- 
suggested the use of ether " in surgery ; and the declaration of Dr. Jacob Bige- ^^^ ^1^^ 

low, one of the physicians of the hospital, that "Dr. Jackson made partial ex- jjqusq 
periments, and recommended, but did not make, decisive ones." He admits committee 
that Dr. Jackson devised and communicated to Mr. Morton the experiment per- j^^^^ sisned 
formed by the latter, and gave him information and directions absolutely essen- -^ i-enort 
tial to its safety and success ; that Dr. Jackson had experienced in his own person, ^^^ closed 
and observed in Dr. W. F. Channing, anaesthetic effects of sulphuric ether; that |^g examin- 
he recommended to Mr. Joseph Peabody, in March, 1846, sulphuric ether to pre- ations. nei- 
vent the pain of the operation of extracting two teeth, and gave him full instruc- therdidMr 
tions as to the requisite purity of ether and the proper mode of using it, as he did g consult 
in the September following to Mr. Mortoh ; — and yet, after all these admissions, g^ ' other 
Mr. Bowditch declares to Mr. Morton, by the mere performance of the first pain- j^^-bej. jq 
less extraction of a tooth from a patient under the influence of sulphuric ether, ^j^jg supple- 
made the great discovery of etherization ! His language is as follows : " He mentary in- 
[Mr. Morton] certainly first administered it [sulphuric ether] to a patient; by so quigition, 
doing, he made the discovery." In other words, performing with the hands an Q^^^g^ le^_ 
experiment devised and committed to him for performance by another man, made j^^g were 
him the author of one of the greatest discoveries ever made in the inductive g^j^^ abroad 
sciences! at the same 

Sir Humphrey Davy having, as has been already stated, observed certain ^Qgeasona- 
aneesthetic effects produced upon himself by nitrous oxide, suggested that it ^^^ ^j^j^g jjj 
could "probably be used with advantage during surgical operations in which no ^^ evident 
great effusion of blood takes place." In conformity with this suggestion, nearly j^^ g ^^ 
half a century after it had been published, and many years after the death of its confusing; 
author, Mr. Horace "Wells, of Connecticut, successfully administered nitrous ^^yitnesses 
oxide, in several instances, to prevent pain in the extraction of teeth. Mr. Bow- ^^ elicitino* 
ditch, in his Report, in direct contradiction to the principle involved in his deci- contradic-'^ 
sion in favor of Mr. Morton, decides that Mr. Wells's " claim, as a discoverer in ^Qj,y. x^^w. 
this matter, must yield entirely to that of Sir Humphrey Davy." Thus, accord- mony after 
ing to Mr. Bowditch, Mr. Wells and Mr. Morton performed each an experiment ^|^q reo-ular 
devised and suggested by another man ; and the former acquired thereby no right examina- 
of discovery, and the latter an exclusive right to one of the greatest discoveries ^io^. " It 
of the age ! Thus, likewise, Davy suggested the probability, merely, that nitrous appeal s, 
oxide might bs used " with advantage " in slight surgical operations; and Dr. ^j^^j,' ^jjg^l^ 
Jackson drew a legitimate philosophical inxliictiou from facts that sulphuric ^^jg ' ^^^^ 
ether would certainly and safely annihilate pain of surgical operations; — and yet, iriiumaiix- 
according to Mr. Bowditch's Report, Davy becomes an exclusive discoverer, and^y^-^^^^^ ^yj^g 
Dr. Jackson no discoverer at all ! gotten up 

There is no intimation in Mr. Bowditch's Report that Sir Humphrey Davy's ^^ Q^jy qqq 
claims to discovery are impaired, though he did not, as lo7ig as he lived, urge pgi-son 
the trial of nitrous oxide in a single dental or surgical operation ; while Dr. Jack- -^yiiQge \Q,is, 
son, for his failure to cause, though, not his neglect to urge, a like trial for sul- ]jave 
phuric ether /or less than five years, is alleged to have "thought his opinion of g^^jj^pg^j 
little value," and to have believed in the power of the ether to prevent pain in j^jj^-^ ^g 

dental operations only ; and this, though he admits, in another part of his report, « Jackson's' 
chief attorney and agent." 



550 

A book has been exhibited to the committee, entitled 
[ 46 ] '• A History of the Massachsetts General Hospital, by N. 
I Bowditcfx, 7iot published. Boston, Printed by John 
Wilson & Son, 22 School-street, 1851." In this book 
[ 47 ] Mr. Bowditch has inserted a chapter on the ether con- 
troversy, which occupies 130 pages of the work. To 
use his own words, " The vrork contains nothing new except, 
perhaps, the award of the French Academy, and also a note show- 
ing the extent to which ether is used in the hospital." Mr. Bow- 
that '• his [Dr. Jackson's] observations and conclusions " had reference to 
^^ surgiea-l operations.'' 

Though the gross inconsistencies and contradictions contained in Mr. Bow- 
ditch's Report deprive his reasoni-ngs and conclusions of any claim to respect, 
his admissio7i of facts are not unimportant ; inasmuch as his violent bias against 
Dr. Jackson, and partisan advocacy of Mr. Morton's claims, makes it evident 
that those admissions must have been extorted from him by evidence too strong 
to be assailed in the community where the character of the witnesseswas known. 

Admission similar to those of Mr, Bowditch have been made by the only two 
physicians of Boston, who have published articles in the Boston Medical Journal 
against Dr. Jackson's claims to the discovery, — Dr. Jacob Bigelow, and his son, 
Dr. Henry J. Bigelow. The former of these gentlemen, in an article published in 
the aforesaid journal, says : '< Dr. Jackson made partial experiments, and recom- 
mended, but did not make decisive ones." Also, at a meeting of physicians, 
at the close of the Medical School, March 1, 1847, the same gentleman called 
Dr. Jackson "the original suggester " of etherization. Hon. Edward Everett, 
in the letter contained in this Report, says, that a meeting of the American 
Academy of Arts and Sciences, held JN'ovember 3, 1846, Dr. Henry J. Bigelow 
described the early dental operations performed by Mr. Morton on patients under 
the influence of ether, and that in that communication Dr. Bigelow stated, .that 
"' Dr. Morton had derived his knowledge of the substance used from Dr. Jackson." 

"Further, in a printed note to an address delivered at the opening of the new 
Medical College, November 6, 1846, referring to the discovery of etherization, 
Mr. Everett says : '•' Dr. Bigelow ascribes its first suggestion to Dr. Charles T. 
Jackson, and its application under his advice, for the purpose of mitigating pain, 
to Dr. "V7. T. G. Morton." Thus Dr. H. J. Bigelow conceded to Dr. Jackson — 
before the controversy commenced, and when, never having had any communi- 
cation with Dr. Jackson on the subject, he must have derived his information 
from Mr. Morton himself, whose early experiments he described — all the "know- 
ledge " involved in the discovery. At a later period, as if discovery were the 
work, not of the head but of the hand, he sets forth, in the Boston Medical and 
Surgical Journal, the following strange declaration : " He who verifies the sug- 
gestion, is the true discoverer." The statement which he made at the aforesaid 
meeting of the American Academy, as testified to by Mr. Everett, shows that he 
means by suggestion, in this case, both the devising of the decisive experiment 
and the recommending of it to Mr. Morton ; and by verification, the mere perfor- 
mance of the experiment committed to Mr. Morton by Dr. Jackson ; that is, Mr. 
Morton's doing what he had been taught to do. 

The admissions, in the city where the facts are best known, of Mr. Bowditch and 
the Messers. Bigelow, include every thing that, according to the unanimous de- 
cision of mankind, in the case os Franklin's great discovery, is essential to ren- 
der valid Dr. Jackson's claim to the discovery of etherization; and the denial 
bv them of those claims rests on a dogma rejected by the Avhole scientific world, 
and expressly repudiated by Whewell in the words already quoted : " I do not 
concede that experiments of verification, devised and committed to another for 
performance, give the operator a right to claim the discovery as his own." 

The majority of the committee concede the truth of this principle, and endea- 
vor to evade its application to the ether controversy, not by disproving the fact 
admitted by the aforesaid gentlemen, but by arguing that those fact are "im- 
probable," notwithstanding they are established both by the admission of Dr. 
Jackson's principal opponents, and by irrefragable evidence. 



551 

ditch, as a scholar and a historian, must have ha<l before him the 
Compfes Rendus of the French Academy, where the whole award 
of the committee is published. He gives, however, as the award 
of the Academy, but a portion of the report, omitting wholly that See the 
which relates to Dr. Jackson^s discovery. Even the part which p^^^ \g ^^^ 
he has given he has mistranslated in such a manner as to detract translation 
from Dr. Jackson's merit. agrees with 

In the preface to his book he says : '^ The Academy, it will be 3^^^^^°^''^" 
seen, accord to Dr. Morton the idea, thought, or purpose of 
making this discovery, and to Dr. Jackson the observed fact (/g 
fait observe) of the safety of the agent used, and attributes the 
ifinal result equally to them both, regarding the mental pre-occu- 
pation or engrossment of the one, and the observations of the 
other, alike indispensable." 

This statement is full of eirors. The Academy does not ac- What 

€ord to Morton the idea, thought, or purpose of making this other idea 
discovery* namely, the applicability of sulphuric ether to prevent ^^ ^® l^ 
the pain of surgical operations. It does not accord to Dr. Jack- menrs^^ro- 
5on merely the observed fact (lefait observe) of the safety of the yen? 
agent used. The report says expressly that "the fact observed 
by Dr. Jackson was, that individuals exposed during a certain ^^^^ '^'^^l 
time to the action of ethereal vapor, had been momentarily de- pretend to 
prived of all sensibility ; this is the physiological fact. M. Jack- to have ob- 
son verified it upon himself," The fact observed was not, as Mr. facricept 
Bowditch would imply, a mere auxiliary one, but a fact contain- upon him- 
ing within itself the whole scientific discovery. It was the im- seh", ii^hen 
portant fact of anaesthesia by inhalation. The manner in which ^^' . ^^^'* 
Mr. Bowditch has distorted this award will be seen from the ^ol- ^conscious, 
lowing translation of an extract from the report upon the prize as if under 
of Medicine and Surgery for the years 1847 and 1848; com-j^^^^nceof 
missioners — MM. Velpeau, Rayer, Serres, Magendie, Dumeril, 
Andral, Flourens, Lallemand ; Roux, chairman. — {Comptes Ren- 
dus de rAcademie des Sciences, J 850.) 

'^ You know, gentlemen — for this delDate has already resounded 
in the bosom of the Academy — that two men, who inhabit the 
same city, (Boston,) have attached their names by two different 
titles to this important fact of anaesthesia by the inhalation of 
ethereral vapors, and the application of this means to medical 
and surgical practice. One is M. Jackson, professor of chemistry ; 
the other M. Morton, surgeon dentist. Thus, as happens only 
too often under similar circumstances, a discussion of priority has 
been raised between them. Nevertheless, the commission is bound 
to take a part with reference to the facts and events which have 
occurred at a distance from us. All the documents have passed 
under our eyes ; we have made a most attentive and conscientious 
examination of them ; and from this examination we have arrived 
at the conviction that there are in this discovery of etherization 

* It does. 



552 

"Some in- two distinct things which were produced successively — one 

WhorThis [ 48 ] of which belongs to M. Jackson, the other to M. Morton, 
indicates M. Jackson had remarked that some individuals, on account 

the folly of of having remained during a certain time exposed to the action of 
takiugsuch g^hereal vapors, had been, for the time, deprived of ail sensibility, 
proof. This is the physiological fact. M. Jackson verified it upon him- 
self Later, M. Morton .^^ucceeded several times in performing, 
, v\^ithout pain, the extraction of teeth from certain persons who 
uidea'' is ^^^ been previously submitted to the inhalation of ethereal vapor, 
conceded Moreover, he prevailed upon certain surgeons of the large hos- 
to Morton : pitgjg of Boston to have recourse to' the same means in the prac- 
^serv^dXj ^^^^ ^^ large operations. Here is ansthesia rendered useful — • 
Jackson is applied. The discovery has thereby been completed. MM. 
an effect Jackson and Morton were necessary one to the other. Without 
inary ™?f- ^^^ importunity,* the devotion to one idea, the courage, not to say 
dividuais, audacity, of M. Morton, the observation made by M. Jackson 
whom he might have remained a long time unapplied ; and without the 
^ZtenTeT ^^^^ obscrvcd by M. Jackson, the idea of M. Morton might have 
to*exist. been sterile and without effect. 

" After, then, having maturely reflected, the commission has 

* See Ta- thought that there were two distinct parts to be recognised in 
transla- ^^^ brilliant discovery of etherization, and that to each of the 
tion^ p. two, separately, ought to be accorded a particular prize. In 
573. consequence, it proposes to the Academy to decree a . prize of 

Mr. S. ^'^^ thousand five hundred francs to M. Jackson for his observa- 
« might tions and his experiments upon the anaesthetic effects produced 
^^^-^vf^" ^y ^^ inhalation of ether. Another, of two thousand five hun- 
and^^ ^ ^^^ ^^^^ francs, likewise, to M. Morton, for having introduced this 
thoughts in method into surgical practice after the indications of M. Jackson." 
the French Now, what was this idea (pensee) of Mr. Morton, which Mr. 
Sf ^ heen Bowditch, purely on his own authority, says was the purpose of 
equally making this discovery ? Mr. Bowditch might have seen, in the 
conversant same number of the Comptes Rendus in which the report of the 
laneuao-e ^ commission is contained, a published lecture upon etherization by 
as Mr.°Ta-M. Velpeau, who is named at the head of the commission on 
sistro, hut ether. This lecture explains that this idea (pensee) of Morton 
^^anSa^^^^^ was a notion not peculiar to himself, but common to men of his 
tions are profession, that some way could be contrived for extracting teeth 
singularly without pain : an idea which the mesmerizers have pretended 

defective, ^hey have realized — an idea w^hich Dr. Warren says has lonar 
consider- • . . • . *^ . . ^ 

ing the prevailed in the medical profession, and which the majority re- 
severity port says has obtained since the most remote antiquity, 
with which ^^ Velpeau says : "It was reserved for the New World, and foi 
judgment ^^^ ^^^Y ^^ Boston, to give to that w^hich all thought impossible, 
on Mr. the force of an accomplished fact. Two men were, in some sort, 
Bowditch. associated for the demonstration of the fact. The one, M. Jack- 
son, a chemist, a distinguished savant, having seen some students 
intoxicate themselves with ether, and become insensible, in the 



553 

laboratories of Cambridge, respired himself the vapor of ether, 
in order to cure himself of headache, or to calm the irritations 
of his chest, which he had contracted by breathing chlorine. 
His experiments and remarks led him to conclude that the vapor 
of ether could render man insensible to the action of exterior 
agents. The other, M. Morton, a simple dentist, tormented for 
som£ time with need of realizing the famous axiom of the men 
of his profession — the extracting teeth without pain — spoke of 
this to Dr. Jackson, whose student he had been. * Make your 
patients breathe ether,' says the chemist — ' they will fall asleep. Here the 
and you can do with them afterwards what you please.' With J^^^*^^ -p^,^ 
this gleam of light, Mr. Morton puts himself at work, contrives jackson to 
or constructs apparatus, makes trials, and soon succeeds in ex- have flash- 
tracting, without pain, the teeth of those who came to invoke ^i l/f/j,''^ 
the skill of his hand. Sure, then, of this fact, he address- r ^9 i Morton and 
ed himself to the surgeons of the Massachusetts General ^ -« concede all 
Hospital, and proposed to them to apply his means to patients !^^ ^^^^ ^^ 
who were to be submitted to the action of cutting instruments. 
They hesitate a moment ; they afterwards accept. Without be- 
ing complete, the first experiment gave courage. At the second 
rttempt, success left nothing to desire. The facts multiply them- 
selves in a few days, and the question is answered almost as soon 
as put. No objection is longer possible, the most incredulous 
are obliged to yield to the evidence ; they must believe their 
eyes; the solution of the grand problem is at last found."* ^rand prob- 

The remarks of M. Velpeau, although according too large a hm'' was 
share of merit to Morton, leave no doubt that, in the opinion of solved, viz: 
the commission, Morton was wholly indebted to Dr. Jackson for J^^jj^q^ 
the idea that the application of the vapor of ether could render 
man insensible to the action of exterior agents. 

Taking the report of the commission, and its explanation as onfainrSl 
given by M. Velpeau, there can be no doubt that Mr. Bowditch that is per- 
has ignorantly or wilfully misrepresented the opinions and judg- tinent. See 
ment of the commission. *^® whole 

The undersigned appeals to all honorable scholars, whether 
any authority is to be given to the opinions or statements of one 
who, disclaiming all bias, and speaking ex cathedra as an impar- 
tial historian, has been so careless or ignorant as to publish, as 
the whole award of the French Academy, only an extract from 
the report of the commission, w^holly omitting that portion which 
recognises Dr. Jackson's discovery : who has been so reckless as 
to give his surmises as the solemn judgments of the Academy ; 
and who has wilfully misrepresented that the award of the Acad- 
emy accords to Dr. Jackson only the observation of the safety of 
the anesthetic agent, and to Mr. Morton the purpose of making 
the discovery of anaesthesia by inhalation; who, having in his 

*It should be observed that M. Yelpeau was in correspondence with some of 
the surgeons of the Massachusetts General Hospital. 



554 

^ report, claimed for Mr. Morton the honor of the discovery, partly 

tions)'^'^"' °^ ^^^ ground of his previous experiments with ether, calls the 
This means award — which rejects all Morton's claims to previous experi- 
suggestions ments, and declares that he applied ether in conformity with the 
^modt ^^^''^ indicaUons,^^ the pointing out of Dr. Jackson — an entire tri- 
extent ofumph of Dr. Morton over the exclusive claims of his opponent 1 
applying The undersigned fully agrees with the majority that this ques- 
which the ^^^^ ^^ discovery is one in every way proper to be tried by dijury 
Academy of the vicinage. It has been tried by such a jury, and here is 
understood their triumnhant verdict : 
to be Dr. 

merit. " ^^ ^^-^ Senate and House of Representatives in Congress as- 
sembled : 

'• The undersigned, residents of Boston and its vicinity, re- 
spectfully represent that they have been familiar with the great 
discovery of the anaesthetic use of ether from its origin, and with 
the controversy following it. They now believe, and ever have 
believed, that Dr. Charles T. Jackson is its sole and veritable 
discoverer ; and that any merit on the part of W. T. G. Morton, 
the surgeons of the Massachusetts General Hospital, or of others, 
See the consists in taking his discovery, after he had communicated it to 
memorials many persons, in many places, known to some of us to be of un- 
J^^jqj^^°^^" impeached and unimpeachable characters, and subjecting it to 
irom Bos- additional employment. We, therefore, strongly feel that any 
ton, here- recognition of the comparatively insignificant connexion of others 
^^ • in bringing this great discovery into general use, on the part of 

your honorable bodies, without granting a proportionate award 
to its originator and discoverer, would work a wrong and injus- 
tice beyond parallel in the history of science. 

" We therefore feel bound, earnestly and respect- 
[ 50 ] fully, to remonstrate against the distribution of any 
national honors or rewards to any other person, which 
we believe to be due solely (so far as the great fact of discovery 
is considered) to Dr. Jackson ; for we feel an assurance, as strong 
as evidence derived from the testimony of others and our specific 
knowledge of Dr. Jackson's traits of character can give, that, 
had it not been for him, this great contribution to humanity 
would be still among the things yet hidden. 
"And as in duty bound will ever pray. 
" February 9, 1852. 

Luther Y. Bell, Physician and Swperintendent of the McLean 

Asylum for the Insane. 
C. H. Stedman, M. D., Late Physician to the Qity Institutions, 

South Boston. 



555 



Edward Reynolds, M. D., Physician and iSurgeon to the Eye 
and Ear Infirmary, and late Surgeon to the Massachusetts 
G-eneral Hospital, 

J. B. S. Jackson, M. D., one of the Physicians of the Massachu- 
setts G-eneral Rospital. 



Siias Durkee, 


D. M. Parker, 


Ephraim Buck, 


E. T. Eastman, 


Woodbridge Strong, 


S. S. Whipple, 


William J. Walker, 


E. C. Rolfe, 


Samuel Morill, 


C. A. Walker, Physician U 


Horace Dupee, one of the Phy- 


to the City Institutions. 


sicians of the Lying-in Hos- 


Wm. H. Thorndike, 


pital. 


Robert Green, 


Henry Bartlett, 


F. L. Chase, 


Franklin F. Patcli, 


J. B. Taylor, 


E. J. Davenport, 


Jona. W. Bemis, 


Henry A. Ward, 


Jacob Hayes, 


John Flint, 


Luther Johnson, 


Josiah F. Flagg, 


J. F. W. Lane, 


Wm. P. Dexter, 


Wm. W. Morland, 


W. S. Coffin, 


John Bacon, Jr., 


E. Whitney Blake, 


F. S. Ainsworth, 


J. M. Phipps, 


Nath. B. Shurtleff, 


George F. Bigelow, 


Buckminster Brown, 


Joshua Tucker, 


J. V. C. Smith, late City Phy 


Henry A. Martin, 


sician. 


Charles M» Windship, 


W. G. Hanaford, 


Joseph H. Streeter, 


E. Palmer, 


Horatio Gr. Morse, 


James Ayer, 


J. W. Warren, Jr« 


Ira W. Tobie, 


John B. Allev, 


Fytche Edward Oliver, 


J. L. Williams, 


Le Baron Russell, 


Geo. W. Otis, Jr., 


A. Ao Watson, 


George Russell, 


George H. Gay, 


P. E. Molloy, 


Geo. Stephen Jones, 


James Hyndman, 


John A. Tarbell, 


Harvey E. Weston, 


R. W. Newell, 


Abram Paige, 


T, Fletcher Oakes, 


Daniel Harwood, 


Henrv W. Williams, 


John Odin, jr., 


Thom'as B. Wales, 


Charles \Y. Calkins, 


Geo. Hubbard, f 51 1 


Howard Sargent, 


G. C. Holbrook, 


Horace Stacy, 


J. E. Herrick, 


S. Cabot, jr.', 


Alanson Abbe, 


Robert Capen, 


W. W. Codman, 


Benjamin S. Codman, 


John C. Hayden, 


S. A. Bemis, Dentist. 


William F. Channing, 



556 

John Clough, M. C. Green, 

S. L. Abbott, E. D. G. Palmer, 

D. Humphrey Storer, one of D. M. B. Thaxter, 

the physicians Mass. Gene- Jno. S. H. Fogg, 

ral Hospital. P. M. Crane, 

J. Sydenham Flint, Jas. J. Fales, 

Henry S. Lee, Dan'l. Y. Folts, 

Calvin Stevens, Chas. J. Putnam, 

David Osgood, Moses Clark, 

Elisha G. Tucker, Abraham R. Thompson, 

Moses W. Weld, Stephen Ball, 

Henry James Martin, A. D. W. Martin. 

" To the Senate and House of Representatives in Congresss 

assembled : 

" The undersigned, members of the Massachusetts Medical 
Society, resident in Boston and its vicinity, respectfully repre- 
sent, that they are familiar with the principal facts connected 
with the great discovery of etherization, and its introduction into 
surgical practice ; and they declare their full belief that Dr. 
Charles T. Jackson, of Boston, having inferred, from his experi- 
ments and observations, that sulphuric ether, free from alcohol 
and acids, has the power safely and effectually to destroy the 
pain of surgical operations, communicated that conclusion to vari- 
ous individuals, and in February, 1846, recommended to one of 
them, Joseph Peabody, a student in his laboratory, the use of sul- 
phuric ether as an anaesthetic agent ; and subsequently, on the 
30th of September of the same year, to W. T. G. Morton, a den- 
tist of Boston, giving him, at the same time, directions respecting 
the quality of the ether to be used and the proper mode of admin- 
istering it, and assuring him of the safety, and assuming the re- 
sponsibility, of the application. 

" The undersigned further declare their belief that the merit, 
which they would by no means undervalue, of W. T. G. Morton 
and others, in relation to the discovery of etherization, consists 
entirely in their having practically verified it, and zealously la- 
bored to introduce it into surgical practice. 

" The undersigned believing, therefore, that, in relation to the 
great discovery of etherization. Dr. Jackson was the head, and 
W. T. G. Morton the hand, respectfully and earnestly remon- 
strate against any grant, by your honorable bodies, of honors or 
money to the latter, not accompanied by the grant of a propor- 
tionate reward to the former, for the far higher agency he had in 
conferring the great boon of etherization upon the human race. 



557 



Morrill Wjman, 
Benjamin D. Bartlett, 
J. E. Stevens, 
George Baker, 
Wm. G. Wheeler, 
Charles Chase, 
A. B. Snow, 
Herman B. Inches, 
C. D. Cleaveland, 
S. R. Philbrick, 
Joseph C. Sanborno, 
Henrj Ljon, 
Edwin Adams, 
E. W, Gleason, 
Jno. C. Dalton, 
Henry A. Barrett, 
Josiah Bartlett, 
J. S. Calef, 
Andrew Alexander, 
Jonathan Ware, 
James A. Merrill, 
Charles F. Hoffendahl, 



T. J. Parker, 
Anson Hooker, 
Benjamin Seaburj, 

A. L. Weymouth, 
Alexander Poole, 

William Ingalls, physician and 
surgeon U, S. Marine Hos- 
pital^ Chelsea^ Mass. 

B. P. F. Randall, 

G. C. Shattuck, one of 

the physicians of the [ 52 ] 
3Iassachusetts G-en- 
eral Hospital. 

Henry G. Clark, one of the 
surgeons of the Massachu- 
setts General Hospital. 

E. A. S. Nichols, 

J. S. Nichols, 

Timothy R. Nute, 

H. D. Train, 

Charles F. Foster, 

A. B. Malcolm." 



As a suitable accompaniment to the preceding remonstrances, 
the undersigned presents the following letter, addressed to him 
by Dr. Luther V. Bell, Superintendent of the McLean Asylum for 
the Insane — a gentleman who, by the current testimony of the 
delegation in Congress from his State, is second in medical at- 
tainments and personal character to none in his profession : 

" McLean Asylum for the Insane, 
Somerville, Mass., March 2Qth, 1852. 

" Sir: Your letter of March 1st has this moment reached me Opinion, 
from the post office, after a delay entirely unaccountable to me. ^?^ not«e$- 
I did write a letter in reply to Col. Wm. H. Bissell, M. C, Chair- sbowTgany 
man, &c., in reply to a printed circular, addressed to me by him, testimony 
requesting any information within my knowledge or experience *^ ^^^ h^sis. 
in relation to the anaesthetic agents. 

'' I replied to him by mail, but kept no copy of my letter. Its 
contents are, however, distinct in my memory, certainly as to its 
general tenor. 

*' I said to him that I had no views or experience on the subject 
which were not common to the profession. 

''^ I then observed that, although no opinion was solicited on 
the question of discovery, I could not, with my views of duty, 
forbear taking advantage of the present opportunity to express 
the entire conviction which I, familiar with the whole matter from 



558 

^*Thegeo-its earliest announcement, had always had, that the credit of the 
xf^Hamp- discovery is due entirely to Dr. Jackson, and that the part which 
shire and Mr. Morton, Dr. Hayward, Dr. Bigelow, junior, and the rest of 
Maine is at the early experimenters played, consisted solely in pursuing the 
^^jJJ^ ^v^J^^^ course which he had marked out and tested. I further stated, 
■nita ; and that if it had not been for Dr. Jackson, this great discovery, in 
there could my opinion, would be among the things that are yet unheard of. 
more *^ac^ ^ ^^^^ stated, that one of the great stumbling-blocks in the minds 
ceptableof- of those who know nothing of the peculiar mental constitution of 
fering ren- certain men of ingenuity and science — the circumstance that Dr. 
science *^ ^'^ ^^ conscious of such a mighty discovery, did not at once make 
than a re- ^ bruit about it — was perfectly explained in the minds of all of 
survey of us, who intimately knew him and his modes of thinking and act- 
State if^"S' ^^ ^^^^ ^^^* what he did was precisely what a priori we 
hisdiscoTe- should have expected him to do. Indeed, I have often spoken of 
ries in his course, in the early days of this discovery, as exactly analo- 
Mame were gQ^g ^q l^ijg course of action in relation to certain valuable 

why was [ '^^ J discoveries of his, in his geological surveys of Maine and 
the survey New Hampshire.* I concluded by saying that opinions — I 

discon- might have said if based on a vast number of little and almost in- 
communicable circumstances — are of value only as connected with 
the sources from which they are derived ; and I referred him as 
to the value of any judgment originating from me, to the Massa- 
chusetts delegation in your House, or to our Senators, as well as 
to those from New Hampshire, to most of whom my position in 
the profession and the community is not unknown. 
*'• I have the honor to be, 

*^ Very respectfully, yours, 

*^ LUTHER V. BELL. 

There is " P. S. — So far as the personal character of the claimants for 
something the honor of this discovery may bear on the probabilities of their 
^^arenl'^'^^' <^^^i"^s, I think I ought to add my testimony to the, doubtless, 
and «•' teem- concurrent mass of opinion from this region, that if there be a 
tricity'' in pure, upright, transparent man among us, it is Charles T. Jack- 
this letter, g^^^ ^^ jg ^^^ without his pecuharities of manner and eccen- 
tricities of views, but for sterling truthfulness and integrity of 
character, no man on my list of acquaintances stands higher. 

"L. V. B.'' 

As to the Such are the testimonials from the "vicinage" in relation to 
^T^h ^^>?^^^ Dr. Jackson's rights to this discovery. No less decided and uni- 
pital, see ^^^ ^^ public opinion in Europe in his favor. It is well known 
majority re- that Br, Jackson received, in honor of this discovery, from Louis 
port and Napoleon, President of the French Republic, the cross of the Le- 
of^surge/ns S^^^ ^^ Honor,* and a gold medal,t struck expressly for this pur- 

* Paris, May 10, 1849. — You ask me in regard to the ether quarrel and Dr. 
Jackson. These are the answers : 1. In the first place, the Grand Cross of the 



559 

pose, from the King of Sweden, at the suggestion of Berzelius, 
the first chemist of the world. These honors, it has been falsely 
said, were paid to Dr. Jackson before Morton's claims were 
know^n. In April, 1850, Sir Charles Lyeli, President of the Geo- 
logical Society of London, writes Dr. Jackson as follows : 

^*My Dear Sir: Since you were so kind as to send me your sir Chas. 
pamphlet proving your claims to the ether discovery, I haveLyei], like 
been much occupied with family affairs, having lost both my ^^J^ ^^^^. 
father and mother, who died at an advanced age, each of them, presses his 

"I was really very glad to have so clear and unequivocal evi- opinion on 
dence to show to others of your claim to priority, for I and some J^"® ^^^^ ^^ 
of my friends had, in their correspondence with the United States, without any- 
had such distinct statements to the contrary effect, that, although knowledge 
I suspended my own iudp-raent: and did not take any part or offer ^^ facts, or 
any opinion, I was surprised to see how very unfounded were the ^^ ^^^^^ 
rival pretensions. must yield 

" The discovery, leading, as it did, to chloroform, (which I *<> ^^e testi> 
believe many of your practitioners regard as a doubtful improve- ^^^jest ^ 
mentby way of substitute,) I regard, as one of the greatest ever witness who 
made ; and in nothing do I think the love of progress and the knows a fact 
welcoming of new ideas has been more advantageously displayed, g^J^Jt^^Jlje 
than in the extent to which Americans have made use of this opinion. 
method of alleviating human suffering, beyond the people of this 
country, where prejudice, and religious bigotry, and Rabbinical 
notions have most seriously impeded its adoption ; most particu- 
larly in London, where the medical men have displayed a want of 
moral courage truly deplorable. * * -* # # 
*' Believe me, most sincerely yours, 

" CHARLES LYELL." 

The undersigned has before him a work on aneesthesia, 
published at Vienna, in 1850, by Dr. Joseph Weiger, Impe- [ 54 ] All this is 
rial and Royal principal Dentist to the poor. Emeritus Pro- humiliating 

fessor of Surgery, Surgeon to the Courts of Justice, and to the ^,^ns. '^Are 
Prisons of Vienna. The author has performed, himself, 21,000 we to shut 
operations w^ith ether. He did 1,560 in the first five an a half o^r eyes to 
months after the discovery was made known in Europe by Dr. ^^^^^ ^^ 
Jackson. In the first fifty days he operated with ether 547 times. /om>?i 



OPINIONS 



Legion of Honor has not been conferred on Dr. J. There are two degress ; the not found- 
Iov?est — that of Chevalier — was given to him. It is a very problematic honor ; cd on facts? 
the manner in which it was distributed by Louis Phillippe having made it a dis- 
tinction to be without it. Recently it was offered to M. Richard, one of the 
Hiayors of Paris, who refused it on this ground. 

The giving the Cross to Dr. Jackson was principally owing to the efforts of 
M. Eli de Beaumont, the distinguished geologist, and' was just as much for 
what Dr. Jackson may have done as a geologist as for anything he may have 
had to do with ether. — Letter of Mr. .Sumner, brother of Senator Sumner, to 
Dr. George Hayivard, of Boston. 

t The gold medal was given upon the same consideration. 



560 

His cases are of all kinds, from dental extractions to capital 
operations and child-birth. This work has been published since 
the award of the French Academy ; and the author attributes the 
discovery exclusively to Dr. Jackson, though he is perfectly cog- 
nizant of Morton's pretensions and of his alleged services. 

The author begins thus : " Through Jackson's wonderful disco- 
very of the remarkable effects of ether vapor upon the human organ- 
ism, a new era in operative surgery has indisputably set in. For 
centuries there was a fruitless endeavor, amono- surg^eons of humane 
feelings, to discover some means ot making the pam in necessarily 
bloiody eperations less painful, but without success in doing it. 
This man a ^j^g accidental breaking of a flask of ether (chlorine gas) in 
pret^end ^to ^ chemical laboratory oi the New World, procured for Dr. Jack- 
any knowl- son the fortune of being made famous by the discovery of the 
edge of the hitherto unknown powers of ethers 

Mr. Stanley " ^^^ centuries sulphuric ether was known, and was applied by 
found his physicians in various diseases, as well internally as externally, 
rsports on without exciting a suspicion of its newly-discovered, as well as 
w. like i^g ^^^Yy beneficial effects." 

Again he speaks of it " as the highly important and greatest 

discovery of our century. I say ihe greatest discovery, since we 

could realize our wishes, though more slowly, without steamboats 

or telegraphs ; but what has been gained to suffering humanity 

hy painless operations, he only can comprehend and appreciate, 

who is placed on his mournful bed for the purpose of undergoing 

a capital operation." 

In Vienna the operation of etherization is called " Jacksok-izikg ; " 

This is a <«that is a new expression. People say Galvanizing, after the dis- 

fact not In ^o^'^O' °^ ^^^ physician, Galvani ; so should this discovery becalled 

evidence. Jacksonizing, after the gigantic discovery of Jackson." 

'' The people will give it this name, which is, probably^ the 
only thanks he \s\\\ receive for so beneficent a discovery." 
Again, Dr. Weiger says : •'■ If the famous man (Dr. C. T. Jack- 
Probably son) comes to Vienna, there is a feast-hanquet in store for him. 
has nothi'n^ Then must all those come together whose teeth have been extract- 
else in store ed without pain, and many a tear of thanks will fall upon his 
for him. hand from others who have been operated upon, which will make 
for him a chain of pearls, with which the whole world is linked to 
him as its great benefactor."-' 

Mr. Morton has produced an impression in his favor, by the 

* In consulting twenty-six works, which have been published by physicians 
and surgeons in different countries of Europe, between the years lfc47 and 1852, 
it is found that not one of them accords to Mr. Morton any right to the discov- 
ery of anaesthesia ; but, on the contrary, after examining the claims of the dif- 
ferent aspirants to the honor of this discoyery, they with great unanimity ac- 
cord it to Dr. Charles T. Jackson. This is the result to which all men of sci- 
ence have arrived, where the evidence in the case has been impartially v.^eighed. 
There are hundreds which give tne right to Dr. Morton — but it was not imagined 
by him that this was evidence on wliich a committee would report, nor was any 
such thing suggested to the committee. 



561 

exhibition of an enormous gold medal, said to have been lately 
awarded to him by the French Academy, which has been shown 
as a final and special expression of the Academy, as to his claims 
to this discovery .t The effect produced by the exhibition of this 
medal, is displayed in two letters published in the report? 
of the majority, one from the Chief of the Bureau of Medi- [55] 
cine and Surgery, and the other from the Surgeon General 
of the United 'States Army. The former says, addressing Mr. 
Morton : *^ The medal of the first class, awarded to you by the 
Medical Institute of Paris, evinces the high estimation entertained 
in that centre of medical science and intelligence, of the services 
you have rendered to humanity." The latter says : " Permit me 
to congratulate you upon the flattering testimonial you have re- 
ceived from the 'National Institute of France." The committee, 
in their report, speaking of this medal, say : "Dr. Morton has, 
within a few days, received the expression of the Aeademy in the 
more acceptable form of their largest gold medal." They then 
proceed to describe it, distinctly conveying the impression that 
the award of this medal was a new and signal testimonial in Mr. 
Morton's favor. The undersigned does not deny that Mr. Morton 
did receive a medal from the Academy. That which he, in fact, 
received, was of the ordinary size — about that of a dollar. Mr. 
Morton has caused the genuine medal to be surrounded by a gold ^ 

frame, upon w^hich is engraved a wreath of oak leaves, the whole 
so ingeniously and artfully contrived, as to give the medal, with 
its setting, the appearance of an enormous medal, over four inches 
in diameter, in a single piece, of the value of four or five hun- 
dred dollars. Within a few days, the undersigned has seen in 
circulation, a printed book, purporting to be the report of the ma- 
jority, circulated, of course, without the knowledge or sanction 
of the majority, as no report had been presented by them to Con- 

t That the Institute of France did not regard Mr. Morton as the discoverer, 
but only as a propagator of the discovery, appears from the following extract 
translated from the Comptes Bendus of the Institute for May and June, 1852 : 
« M. Jackson, who, iu the public session the 4th of March, 1850, had obtained 
of the Academy a prize for his researches concerning the effects produced by 
the inhalation of ether, asks if M. Morton^ who, in that session, had also ob- 
tained a prize for his labors on the application of the same therapeutic agent, 
has been considered as inventor, or simply as propagator of the discovery. 

" The proch,-verhal of the public session does not permit any doubt in that 
respect. The Academy, on the proposition of the commission on prizes of 
medicine and of surgery for the years 1847 and 1848, has decreed a, prize of 
2,500 francs to M. Jackson^ for his observations and his experiments on the an- 
SBSthetic effects produced by the inhalation of ether; and another of 2,500 francs 
likewise to M. Morton y for having introduced that method in surgical practice, 
in conformity with the indications of M. Jackson (d'aprh Us indications d& M. 
Jackson).'* Comptes Rendjts des Seances de P Academic des Seiejices, Tome 
xxxiv., No. 20 (17 Mai, 1852.) Whether 

In the Comptes Rend us for June 14th, there is a notice of a second letter this was the 
which the Academy received from Dr. Jackson before their reply to his first had production 
reached him. In the ^^Table d$s Matierts^* for that number of the proceedings, ofDr. Jack- 
Mr. M#rt0Q is meritloned as « arroo-aftw^' ?o himself ^^ the discovery of etheri- son is not 
'^^t^o^- stated. 

36 



562 

gress. In this book are two engravings, purporting to be fac- 
similes of the medal. The deception before referred to, is perpet- 
uated and circulated in the engraving ; for the setting is there 
represented as an integral portion of the medal, its diameter, as 
there delineated, being over four inches. Comment uiDon these 
facts is wholly unnecessary. 

But what does this reception, by Dr. Morton, of " the largest 
gold medaV^ of the Academy signify ? The value of this " new 
testimonial of the Academy" is shown by the following: letter ad- 
dressed to Dr. Jackson : 

[Translation.] 

" Paris, May 17, 1852. 
tJr,if genu- " ^^^ ^^^^ '^^^ * ^ ^^^'^'^ received the two letters which you 
ane', as is to have done me the honor to write to me the 30th of March and 
l)e pre- the 7th of April. 

^e^eHn^v- " ^ wrote to you long since my personal opinion respecting the 
5dence be- pnzc awarded to Mr. Morton. In point of fact, the Academy 
fore the of Sciences decreed one of the Montyon prizes of 2,500 francs to 
committee, y^^ ^^^ ^j^g discovery of etherization, and it has decreed a 

closed the [ ^^ ] prize of 2,500 francs to Mr. Morton for the application of 
case before this discovery to surgical operations, 

it could a ji^ow, all persons w^ho receive a prize of the Academy of 
received in Sciences, can draw simply the sum which has been voted them, 
the United or they can draw a medal either of bronze, silver, or gold. This 
States. medal bears a head of Minerva, and the superscription of Insti- 
tute of France. The cost of the medal is deducted from the sum 
paid. You have drawn simply the sum of 2,500 francs, as is 
usual ; but, according to the information I have obtained from the 
Secretary to-day, Mr. Morton asked for a Gold Medal, the value 
of which is 300 francs, ($60,) and he has received in money only 
2,200 francs. In that Mr. Morton has but made use of a right 
which could not be contested ; but the medal which he has ob- 
tained is the ordinary one of the Institute. 

" It was not struck expressly for him. You have the right to 
ask for one exactly like it; only, in that case, you should receive 
but 2,200 francs, instead of 2,500 francs. 

*' Your devoted servant and friend, 

'' (Signed,) L. ELIE DE BEAUMONT." 

The undersigned feels it due to the claims of Mr. Wells, to 
state, that he has not examined the evidence before the commit- 
tee on his behalf with much care. The papers were referred to a 
member of the committee, whose views are probably incorporated 
in the report of the majority. But if all that Mr. Wells's friends 
urge, is susceptible of being proved, the undersigned is satisfied 
from the evidence that Dr. Jaekson's discovery was made long 



563 

before Wells claimed that he knew anything of the power of ether 
in rendering the system insensible to pain under surgical opera- 
tions. 

In submitting the foregoing, the imdersigned lays no claim to [Probably 
original views. The subject has been exhausted. It has been ar- °^**^ 
gued with much ability, and rather more warmth than was be- 
coming by some of its advocates. He has only tried so to avail 
himself of the labors of others, as to present the truth fairly be- 
fore the House. 

When the undefsigned entered upon the investigation, he was 
inclined to the opinion that Mr. Morton was entitled to the credit 
of the discovery. The undersigned concurs in all that has been 
said, either by the able and accomplished Dr. Warren, by the ma- [No doubt] 
jority of the committee, or by other persons, in favor of the ines- 
timable value of this great discovery. Its advantages can hardly 
be exaggerated. He only desires that the head that conceived, 
and the science and learning that pointed the way, should be re- 
warded, as well as the hand that, following instructions, was in- 
strumental in bringing this agent before the world. 

He read all the arguments which Mr. Morton, Ynih remarkable rpx. ^ ■ ^ 
industry, pressed upon his attention ; and, examining them with g^y ^jjgjj 
care, he was satisfied that injustice had been done to JDr. Jackson, the argu- 
These opinions were formed and expressed before the undersigned mentforDr. 
had ever seen Dr. Jackson, or heard anything in his behalf, ex- ^a^geonclu- 
cept frem the able argument of his counsel, John L. Hayes, Esq., ded on the 
of this city, to whose argument the undersigned is indebted for evidence, 
many suggestions embodied in this report. The undersigned has ^^^ wa^- 
never had ten minutes' conversation with Dr. Jackson, who was ington 
in this city during the past spring for a few" days, very properly without 
abstaining frem all personal solicitation of members to induce ^^ ^JI°^ *^® 
them, bv partial representations, to regard his claims favorably. 

EDW. STANLY. 

The undersigned, a member of the select committee upon 
etherization, who was appointed in consequence of the [ 57 ] 
death of Mr. Rantoul, reports : 

That, after considering the subject, and reading the evidence 
upon the part as well of Dr. Jackson as of Dr. Morton, he has 
arrived at the conclusion that Dr. Charles T. Jackson is the origi- 
nal discoverer of the application of purified sulphuric ether, by 
inhalation, as a means of preventing pain from surgical opera- 
tions. 

The undersigned does not desire to detract from any credit that ^g^g ^ote 
may have been due to Dr. Morton for his action in applying the on next 
anaesthetic agent, and in bringing it more prominently before the V^^-) 
public. 

ALEXANDER EVANS. 



564 

Note. — The report was signed early in March by Mes.srs. Bissel* 
Sutherland, Fitch and Rantoul, four members out of the five 
that composed the committee, all of which were notified by the 
chairman that their laliors were closed. The report was then 
ready for presentation when reports from select committees should 
be called for in the regular order of business of the House. 

Some mornings after the death of Mr. Rantoul, (which occurred 
August 7th, after the report was completed), Mr. Stanly asked 
to have his place filled upon the committee, and the Speaker, 
not knowing that the committee had closed their labors, and 
there being none of the other members in the Hoase, appointed 
Mr. Evans, who joined Mr. Stanly in his minority report, without 
even meeting or conversing with a member of the committee, 
except (it is supposed) Mr. Stanly. 



LETTER FROM N. I. BOWBITCH, ESQ. 



Boston, April 16, 1852. 
Sir : Several of my late colleagues (trustees of the hospital in 
1848,) have received circular letters from you, making certain 
inquiries. Though none was addressed to myself, I take the 
liberty of replying, as if I received one. It is the duty of the 
trustees annually, to appoint a committee — the chairman being 
the one on whom devolves the drawing up of the report. This 
committee is to examine the accounts, and make a review of all 
important occurrences of the past year, to be laid before the Cor- 
poration. I was appointed chairman, my colleague being Mr. 
Edwards. At the meeting at which we were appointed, it was 
suggested that the ether discovery (the event of the year,) would 
naturally come under our notice. With this informal intimation 
of the wishes of the board, I accordingly complied. At that time, 
Dr. Gay's pamphlet in assertion of Jackson's claims, and Mr. 
Warren's in support of Dr. Morton, were both before the public. 
I read them carefully. I personally saw Mr. Metcalf, and he 
gave the very important information contained in his letters and 
notes. I saw also, (as is mentioned in the report,) twenty-one 
other persons — devoting the leisure of weeks to obtaining what I 
conscientiously believed to be the facts in the case. I had never 
seen Dr. Morton. I had for years lived in the very next house 
to Dr. Jackson on terms of friendship and good will. Mv per- 
sonal preferences would have been wholly in his favor. In 
making this investigation, I had assumed that Dr. Gay's pam- 
phlet contained all he (Dr. Jackson) had to say. Thinking, 
however, that this might not be the case, before submitting the 
report to my colleague for examination, and before, indeed, it 
was wholly completed by myself, I addressed Dr. Jackson a 
note, asking him if he had any additional evidence. This I did 
in the name of the committee. I notified my colleague, but I 
think he was not present at any interviews. Dr. Jackson called 
to see me, and in accordance with his wishes, I made an appoint- 
ment with Dr. Gay, which ended in an interview of three hours. 
Dr. Gay offered to prove that Dr. Morton was a man of previous 
bad character, and to exhibit evidence of transactions of his of a 
dozen years before in a remote part of the country. I told him 
that all this was irrelevant ; that a man ought not to be deprived 
of the credit and honor of this discovery, let his prior character 
he what it might. The details of this interview, in other par- 
ticulars, is stated in our published report. It is also reprinted in 



5G6 

a history of the hospital, a copy of which I had the honor of 
presenting to Mr. Bissell. the chairman of your committee, a short 
time since. The trustees there distinctly disavow '^ all judicial 
powers or functions." After my report was prepared, I lett it 
with my colleague, with the pamphlets of Dr. Gay and Mr. War- 
ren. He kept them two or three days, suggested certain verbal 
alterations — said that the conclusions arrived at were satisfactory to 
his mind, and appended his signature. The document was then read 
by me at a meeting of the trustees, and was specially submitted 
to every member of the board who w^as not present at that meet- 
ing. Its conclusions were agreed to by them all, and they all 
concurred in the subscription of the ?i>l,000 presented subsequently 
to Dr. Morton. I suppose they would all say that they consider 
me alone responsible for the preparation of the report, and that 
personally, they made no investigation of the subject; and they 
would probably all say, that they have seen no reason to doubt 
the accuracy of the conclusions there arrived at. 
I have the honor to remain. 

Yours, very respectfully, 

N. I, BOWDITCH. 
Hon. Edward Stanley, 

Washincrton, D. C. 



REPORT 



UPON THE 



PREMIUMS FOR MEDICINE AND SURGERY 



THE FRENCH ACADEMY OF SCIENCE, 



1847-'48. 



TRANSLATION, 



REPORT ON THE PREMIUMS AWARDED IN THE DE» 
PARTMENTS OF MEDICINE AND SURGERY, f OR 
THE YEARS 1847 AND 1848. 

Commissioners — Messrs, Velpeau, Rayer, Sevres, Magendie^ 
Dumeril, Andral, Flour ens, Lallemand; Eoux, reporter. 

The Commission, of which I am, on this occasion, the oi gan to 
the Academy, has already been in existence for two years. Com- 
posed as it is of Messrs. Dumeril, Flourens, Rayer, Magendie, 
Serres, Andral, Velpeau, Lallemand, and myself, it has retained 
its original character and been entirely free, therefore, to perform 
with zeal and without delay, in so far as it-lay in its power^ the 
duties of the mission which you had intrusted to it. But the same 
Commission which had been charged with the examination and 
appraisement of the works that had been sent and admitted in 
competition for 1847, was subsequently obliged to emt)race- in its 
sphere of action those thaf were sent and admitted in 1848. It 
is a double task we have had to perform, and the time has arrived 
for us to present you with the results of the sauae; it is, in some 
respects, a double report which we have to make to the Academy.. 

The special labors of the Commission have been yet more pro- 
tracted and difficult than in all former competitions. A great 
number of its sittings have been devoted to the subject, inde- 
pendently 0^' what each member has had to perform in private. 
How could it have been otherwise, when the examination and 
appraisement embraced works more or less extensive, on scientific 
subjects, amounting to more than fifty in number ? But the Com- 
mission is willing at once to acknowledge that, after the satirfac- 
tion of having fiilfilled its duties towards the Academy, a real 
pleasure was reserved for it, — it is that of having selected several 
work* well worthy of the awards which we are about to propose 
to you. 

One of these, however, predominates or excels the rest, and 
it is to this one that we will, in the first place, direct the atten- 
tion of the Academy. The question is not about an extensive 
and complicated work, such as would have required immense la- 
bor, profound meditations, and renewed efforts of intelligence ; it 
only relates to a fact of great importance brought to light — a 
thought fruitful of consequences and applications. This fact and 
this thought combined, bear the stamp of a genuine discovery. 



570 

which has seized upon and vividly impressed the public minxi, and 
which, having started from the new worM, very soon obtained the 
most universal renown. The whole human family was interested 
in it ; its benefits have already been felt by thousands ; future 
generations will profit by it, for it is the lot of man to be for 
ever exposed to all kinds of diseases, which are inevitably attend- 
ed with pain; it is his nature to dread bodily suffering, to revolt 
at the idea that he will soon have to encounter the same, especial- 
ly when he is obliged to submit to the ordeal voluntarily, and to 
desire to escape from the sense of pain with as much, and even 
more eagerness than he employs in seeking for pleasure. There 
is but little probability, in other respects, that medicine and sur- 
gery, notwithstanding all their efforts and all the improvements 
of which they are susceptible, will ever arrive at that point 
when their resources will be stripped of what is repulsive to us, 
and, more particularly, in regard to some of them, of what they 
have in themselves that is <7ruel and dangerous. 

It is especially in surgical operations that this sad and repulsive 
feature prevails ; and it is a glorious service rendered to science 
and to humanity to have brought to light a method which is 
nearly infallible, or* which is at least generally successful for 
making man momentarily insensible to pain, to annihilate in him 
for a few minutes, or even for a longer period of time, once only, 
or successively at various intervals, the perception of external 
impressions, the consciousness of self, certainly, by attacking 
the principle of life, which, however, only occasions a momen- 
tary perturbation, after which all the functions reassume their 
natural sway. For if there are on record some cases of a fatal 
issue of anaesthesia thus artificially produced, it has been owing, 
sometimes, to the defectiveness in the mode of proceeding, 
at other times to inability or want of foresight on the part 
of the experimenters, or to the peculiarly unfortunate idiosyn- 
crasy of the victim, one of those constitutional anomalies, which 
predispose the individual for the most unexpected and most im- 
probable events, according to the known laws in the economy of 
men and animals ; and let us hasten to add, that the well ascer- 
tained cases, too much to be lamented undoubtedly, of the fatal 
effects of aneesthetic agents in men, are, up to the present moment, 
infinitely small compared with the vast number of experiments 
that have been made. There is no exaggeration in saying, that 
during a period of little more than three years only, since the in- 
halations of ether or chloroform have been introduced in the prac- 
tice of medicine and surgery, as an anaesthetic medium, one hun- 
dred thousand individuals, at least, must have been submitted to 
it, first in America, and by American surgeons, to whom belongs 
the merit of having taken the initiative, then in various parts of 
the world ; and out of this number, there are not more than 
twelve or fifteen fatal cases to be deplored. Owing to the cir- 



571 

cumstances in which they have been placed, some of the members 
of your Commission, two of them especially, have had it in their 
power to pay a large tribute to science, in what concerns the use 
of angesthetical mediums. Their experience alone already possesses 
something imposing. Since the close of 1846, (it was at that 
period that the first facts were observed and gathered, at Boston, 
in America, by Messrs. Jackson and Mork)n, and it was not long- 
before the same were known in France) since that time, I say, 
Mr. Velpeau and myself have had occasion to resort, each of us 
in separate practice, to etherization, so called at first, then to 
chloroformization, five or six hundred times at least ; one thou- 
sand, or twelve hundred individuals, or more perhaps, have been 
subjected to the process of ansesthesia by our hands or under our 
eyes, in order to undergo surgical operations, more or less impor- 
tant, and neither of us have as yet seen instantaneous death produced 
by anaesthesia : neither of us have as yet had the heart lacerated 
by the sight of such an occurrence ; and we both doubt that 
anaesthesia, directed with prudence and method, has ever had a 
sinister influence upon the results of our operations ; without daring 
to affirm the fact, and without being able to demonstrate that such 
has been the case, we would rather attribute to it a favorable 
influence. 

The question of ansesthesia produced by the inhalation of ether 
or of chloroform, (and perhaps there will yet be discovered other 
aneesthetical agents, having the same power, and of a still more 
harmless character) this question, we repeat it, is, in the highest 
degree, interesting both to physialogy, surgery, and medicine 
proper. It affects the latter department, which has already de- 
rived some benefits from ansesthetical appliances, in the cure of 
certain diseases, especially where pain is the principal symptom, 
by means of ether or of chloroform. Surgery has lost much of 
what was cruel in its modes of treatment ; its proceedings are less 
frightful ; it has no longer to struggle against the excessive pusil- 
lanimity of some individuals. Physiology having had to study 
the true character, and the action produced upon the central 
organs of the nervous system, by ether or by chloroform, its in- 
vestigations, in which our honorable perpetual secretary, Mr. 
Flourens, has taken so great a part, have not been without benefit 
in the analysis of the functions of the brain. It is possible that 
new and important results are still in store for us. Physiology 
has, moreover, been the starting point of all that has been said, 
and all that has been done, in regard to ether and chloroform. 
Anaesthesia produced by the first of the above mentioned agents, 
and fortuitously observed, is the great physiological fact, from 
which have emanated so many and such valuable practical appli 
cations. 

Considered in this triple point of view, the question of anaesthe 
sia is destined to be the field of much labor; science, in fact, 



572 

possesses already several important works on the subject. Not- 
withstanding all the interest which belongs to these works, not- 
witl standing the information which is spread out in them, the 
matter is very far from being exhausted ; and the moment has 
probably arrived, when it would be proper for the academy to 
take the initiative, for calling into existence one of those great 
works, which it can distinguish and reward in its own name, and 
in a manner worthy of itself. Ansesthesia considered by itself, 
and in view of its applicatione, whether as a therapeutical means,, 
or as a medium for preventing pain in surgical operations, where is 
there a more fascinating subject for study, for clinical experiments 
and observations? How many doubts are yet left to be solved? 
How many important questions are connected with it, which are 
yet to be determined ? Our task is not to enter into even a rapid 
examination of these questions. It is not for the Commission to 
draw out the programme of a scheme of prizes placed in competi- 
tion ; it only delivers its opiiaion into the hands of the Academy. 
The Commission has considered nothing but the original discovery ; 
the generating fact, from which have sprung all those that arc 
incessantly produced under our eyes, leaving the academy free to 
dispense, on some other occasions and under different circumstances, 
eulogies and rewards to such works, through which this discovery 
shall have been perfected. Perhaps, some of these will be due to 
Mr. Simpson, of Edinburgh, if the fact be confirmed, as it evi- 
dently appears, that chloroform is in reality preferable to ether,, 
as an aneesthetical medium, acknow]e(lo;ing, however, that the first 
experiments upon animals "with chloroform were made by Mr. 
Flourens. But the discovery itself has received the sanction of 
time and of experience. After the lapse of more than three years 
since it has been brought into light by science, and the world has 
been benefited by its results, the Academy should no longer delay 
in bestowing upon it its high approbation ; it should proclaim 
and honor it, as one of the most brilliant scientific facts of our 
times, which is certainly to be comprised in the category of those 
that were contemplated by the generous philanthropy of M. de 
Monty on. 

You are aware, gentlemen, for this discussion has already pene- 
trated into the midst of the Academy, that two men, who inhabit 
the same city, (Boston) have affixed their names, but under dif- 
ferent titles, to this important fact of ansesthesia by the inhalation 
of etherial vapors, and the application of that milium to the 
practice of medicine and surgery. One is Mr. Jackson, Professor 
of Chemistry, the other Mr. Morton, a surgical dentist. As it 
happens but too often under similar circumstances, a question 
of priority has sprung up between them. In the meanwhile 
the Commission has been called upon to decide in a matter of facts 
and events that have transpired far from us ; all the documents 
have been submitted to our inspection ; the Commission has ex- 



573 

amined them in the most careful and conscientious manner ; and 
this investigation has led to the conviction, on the part of said 
commissioners, that there is, in the discovery of etherization, two 
distinct things, which have grown out of it successively, one of 
which belongs to Mr. Jackson, the other to Mr. Morton. Mr. 
Jackson had observed that some persons, on being exposed for a 
certain period of time to the action of etherial vapors, were 
momentarily deprived of all sensibility. This is the physiologi- 
cal fact. Mr. Jackson established the fact by trying the experi- 
ment upon himself. Subsequently Mr. Morton succeeded several 
times in extracting a tooth from persons previously subjected to 
the inhalation of etherial vapor, without pain ; moreover, he pre- 
vailed upon some surgeons connected with the large hospitals of 
Boston, to resort to the same medium in the performance of great 
operations. This is ajieesthesia practically applied ; the discov- 
ery is thereby completed ; Mr. Jackson and Mr. Morton have 
been mutually necessary to each other ; without the earnest so- 
licitations, the engrossing idea, and the courage, not to say the 
audacity of the latter, the observation made by Mr. Jackson 
might have remained for a long time without application ; and 
without the fact observed by Mr. Jackson, the idea of Mr. Mor- 
ton might probably have remained fruitless and without effect. 

After mature reflection upon the subject, therefore, the commis- 
sieners are of opinion that there are two distinct- awards to be 
made in this splendid discovery of etherization, and that a par- 
ticular prize should be granted to each one, separately. The 
Commission, ther^fere, proposes to the Academy, that a prize of 
2,500 francs be awarded to Mr. Jackson for his observations and 
experitHents on the anifisthetical effects produced by the inhala- 
tion of ether, and a similar prize of 2,500 francs to Mr. Morton 
for having introduced this method in the practice of surgery, 
after the indications of Mr. Jackson. 

I hereby certify, that the foregoing translation, made by me, 
is literaliv correct, and may be relied upon in every respect. 

L. FITZGERALD TASISTRO, 
Translator to the Department of State. 

January 17^ 1953. 



57 5 



TESTIMONY OF 

GEOEGE HATWAED, M. B. 

I, George Haywarcl, of Boston, in the county of Suffolk, and 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts, being first sworn, depose and 
say, in answer to interrogatories by R. H. Dana, jr., esq., counsel 
for Dr. W. T. G. Morton. 

1st. How long have you resided in Boston ? Are you, and 
how long have you been, a surgeon in the Massachusetts General 
Hospital ? 

Ads. I have always resided in Boston, w^ith the exception of 
an absence of three years in Europe. I am not now a surgeon of 
the Massachusetts General Hospital. I resigned about two years 
since, but I was for five and twenty years before that. 

2d. Are you, and how long have you been, a member of the 
American Academy ? 

Ans. I ^vas elected about thirty-five years ago, and am now a 
member. 

3d. Were you, and how long, a professor, and of what, in Har- 
vard University ? Are you a member of the corporation? Are 
you President of the Massachusetts? Medical Society ? 

Ans. I was Professor of Surgery in Harvard University for fif- 
teen years. I resigned three years ago this spring. I am a 
member of the corporation of Harvard University. I am Presi- 
dent of the Massachusetts Medical Society. 

4th. How long and how intimately have you know^n Dr. Jack- 
son ? How as to Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I have known Dr. Jackson ever since he ^vas a student, 
some twenty years ago, but not intimately. I never knew or saw 
Dr. Morton till the 17th of October, 1846, the day of the second 
trial of the ether at the hospital. 

5th. Please state all your personal knowledge of the first use of 
ether as an anresthetic agent ? 

Ans. I was invited by Dr. Warren to meet him at the Hospital 
on the 16th <lay of October, 1846, he having at that time charge 
of the surgical department at the hospital. I was unable to at- 
tend. He then asked me to meet him on the 17th, the following 
day. I did so. He then told me that there w^ere two patients on 
whom he intended to operate that day, who would inhale some- 
Ihing, I forget what he called it, which would be administered by 
a Mr. Morton, a dentist ; that it had been tried the day before, at 
the hospital, on a patient, with partial success. One of these 
patients on the 17th was a female, with a tumor on the upper part 
of the arm. The other patient did not come. I then saw Mr. 
Morton for the first time. He administered to the female some 
preparation, or something which put her in a state of apparently 
profound sleep. Dr. Warren asked me to do the operation. I 
did so. It lasted about seven minutes. The patient gave no 



sign of consciousness, or sufFermg, and sLe assured me afterwards' 
that she had none. I took charge of the surgical department of 
the hospital on the first of November following, Nq other pa- 
tient had inhaled the ether from the 17th of October till this 
time. On the second of November, Dr. Warren asked me what 
I intended to do in relation to the use of this preparation ©f Mr, 
Morton. I told him that I did not intend to use it, unless I knew 
what it was, and we were all confident that it might be adminis- 
tered with safety. He agreed with me that this was the proper 
course. 

On the 6th of November, Mr. T^Iorton called at my house, and 
inquired if I was not going to remove the limb of a girl, above 
the knee, at the hospital, on the follovving day. I told him I 
was so. He then inquired what I thought about using his "com- 
pound," or "composition." He used one of those words. My 
reply was that I should not, unless he made known to all the 
surgeons of the hospital what the article was, and we were satis- 
fied that it could be used with entire safety. He then told me 
he had no objection to stating what it was, and allowing me to 
make it known to my colleagues, but he wished that it should go 
no further at present, as he had, or was about to apply for a 
patent, and was in hopes of making something by it. He then 
told me what it was. 1 said, "I wish to have it in writing." 
To this he assented, and proposed to address me a note in the 
course of the day. I told him it had better be directed to Dr. 
Warren, as he was the senior surgeon of the hospital. This he 
agreed to do. I then added, that the operation would take place 
at 11 o'clock the next day, Saturday, November 7th ; that there 
would be a consultation of the surgeons at 10 o'clock of that 
day, and that I would then make knov*-n to them what he had 
now communicated to me. I told him also, that he had better 
be there prepared to administer it, and that if we thought it safe, 
it would be used; otherwise, he would have an opportunity of 
seeing the operation done in the old way. On Saturday, N©- 
vember 7th, at 10 o'clock, the consultation was held. All the 
six surgeons were present. I stated to them vv-hat had been com- 
municated to me by Dr. Morton on the preceding day, and Dr. 
Warren also had the letter which had been addressed to him by 
Mr. Morton, but whether it was read,' I cannot say, nor do 1 
know what has since become of it. All the surgeons agreed in 
the propriety of administering fc±e ether. The ether was accord- 
ingly administered. The operation was performed in the presence 
of a large number of spectators — some two or three hundred, with 
entire success. From that day till the present, I have continued 
to use it, without producing in a single instance, any unpleasant 
effects. 

6th. Please state your recollection of the first use of a sponge. 
Ans. Dr. J. Mason W^arren administered it for me, at an ope- 
ration which I performed, vdth his assistance, on the 14th of 
March, 1847. I had used it once before in operating upon an 
infant for hare-lip. I had never heard of its being used before I 
so used it. 



577 

7th. Please to slate the first instance in which you saw, or had 
any communication with Dr. C. T. Jackson, in connection with 
the use of ether as an anaesthetic agent. 

Ans. The first time I ever saw him in connection with the use 
of ether, was the 2d of January, 1847, at the hospital. 

8th. Was Dr. C. T. Jackson present at any of the operations 
at the hospital, as far as you recollect, before January, 1847. 

Ans. I am very confident he w^as not. 

9th. Was he present at any private operation with ether, to 
your knowledge, before January, 1847 ? 

Ans. He might have been, but not to my knowledge. I be- 
lieve he Wt s with Dr. Warren, 

10th. When and how did it first come to your knowledge that 
Dr. C. T. Jackson claimed to have had any connection with the 
ether discovery ? 

Ans. I can't fix the precise time. I should say it was some 
weeks after the seventh of November. I was then told by Dr. 
J. B. S. Jackson that Dr. Charles T. Jackson first suggested the 
use of ether as an anaesthetic agent. 

11th. Is there any fact in your knowledge tending to show 
that any of the operations at the hospital were performed at the 
request of Dr. C. T. Jackson? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 

12th. V/hen you performed the operations in October and No- 
vember to which you have tes^tified, had you any suspicion that 
Dr. C. T. Jackson was in any way connected with the discovery? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. No, sir. 

13th. Vfhat is year opinion of the use of oxygen in casss of 
asphyxia ? 

Ans. I should not think it so useful as atmospheric air; though 
it is a respirable gas. Experiments show that animals who 
breathe it exclusively for a number of hours, die. That is mat- 
ter of opinion, however. 

14th. What is the result of your- experience as to the use of 
nitrous oxide gas as mi ancesthetic agent ? Please answer as to 
its uniformity of operation, safety, eliiciency, and convenience f)f 
making, procuring and using. 

Ans. I have never seen it attempted to be used but once. I 
think Dr. Htnry J. Eigelow did once use it at the hospital with 
partial success. The effects produced by its inhalatio'n are very 
uncertain — very different in different subjects — and, therefore, it 
cannot be relied upon for the purposes which we want. I don't 
know that it might not be safe. I should have doubts about its 
answering the purpose. It is exceedingly inconvenient. It re- 
quires a practical chemist of some skill to make it. The difficulty 
of using it would be, I should think, froiu having an inadequate 
supply, and from the mode in which it is inhaled. 

15th. Do you know of anything tending to show that Dr. C. 
T. Jackson advised the substitution of a sponge for the appa- 
ratus? 



5T8 

Ans. No, sir ; I do not. 

16th. Did you have a conversation with Dr. Horace Wells, of 
Hartford, on the subject of aoEesthesia? If yea, when, and who 
was present ? Please give the whole conversation. 

Ans. He called at my house afler his return from France; after 
we had begun to use the ether as an anaesthetic. There was no 
one present but Dr. Wells and myself. It was in my study. I 
then asked him if he had ever used sulphuric ether by inhalation, 
so as to render any one insensible to pain, and performed any 
surgical operation on the individual w^hile in that state. His 
answer was that he had not, 

17th. In this conversation, did you ask Mr. Wells the question 
whether he had ever used ether as an anc8sthetic agent^? What 
w^as his reply ? 

Ans. I have answered this. 

18th. Did Dr. Morton administer the ether for you in your 
private practice in the autumn of 1846 ? If yea, in what cases ? 

Ans. He did, in three or four cases. Three I recollect dis- 
tinctly. They were ail three cases of removals of tumors from 
the breast of females. 

19th. In the conversation with Dr. Wells, was your question 
and his reply confined to surgical cases, as distinguished from 
dental cases, or how otherwise ? 

Ans. The impression I derived from the conversation w^as, that 
he had never administered sulphuric ether so as to produce insen- 
sibihty. 

20th. Did he make any claim for the discovery cf an ames- 
thetic agent ? if so^ what agent ? 

Ans. 1 am not aware that he said anything on that subject. 

21st. Are you aware that Dr. C. T. Jackson has claimed that 
the first operations at the hospital were performed at his request ? 

Ans. I know nothing more about it than what 1 have seen hi 
print. I never had any conversations with him on that subject. 

22d. Are you aware that he claims that the sponge w^as sub- 
stituted for the apparatus, at his suggestion ? 

Ans. I am not aware of it. 

23d. Do you know of any fact tending to show that he gave 
any advice respecting this substitution ? 

Ans. I do not. 

Cross- inhrrogatories hy A. Jackson, jr., Esq,, counsel for Dr. 
C. T. Jaekson. 

1st. Several tim.es during the preceding answers to the ques- 
tions there has been a reference to the deposition of Dr. J. 
Mason Warren, and the other gentlemen connected with the 
Massachusetts Hospital. V/hether the reference was to the 
depositions taken here by Mr. Putnam ? If aye, will you please 
state from whom you received them ? How long since ? Whether 
they were printed ? Whether the whole examination was printed 
of those gentlemen to whose depositions you referred ? 

Ans. I referred to som^e printed depositions which Avere sent 



579 

me. I think I received them about a week since, franked by 
some member of Congress ; I don't know who. 1 read the 
depositions of J. Mason Warren, and his father, and Dr. Bigelow, 
That is all I know^ about them. I believe I read Dr. Townsend's 
also. I observed they were all taken recently. 

2d. Suppose a person to be asphyxiated after the inhalation of 
sulphuric ether or chloroform, w^hat is his state ? and how is he, 
or can he be, restored to a natural condition ? 

Ans. Asphyxia means ''pulsular state." The object is to 
restore the action of the heart; and when asphyxia is produced, 
as it ordinarily is, from the want of atmospheric air, the lungs 
must be supplied with it, if possible. 

3d. If a person is asphyxiated, would not the inhalation of 
oxygen gas tend to restore the person much more rapidly than 
atmospheric air? 

Ans. I think not; but that is mere matter of opinion. 
4th. Whether you remember that you met Dr. C. T. Jackson, 
in March, or in the spring of 1847, and overtaking him in his 
walk, and referring to an article just published by him in the 
Advertiser, touching etherization, you stated that you did the 
amputation of November 7th, 1846, and that it was not done by 
Dr. Warren, as stated in the article ? 

Ans. I don't remember the time. T stated to him that he had 
made a mistake in saying that Dr. Warren performed that opera- 
tion. 

5th. Wliether you remember that the amputation of November 
7th was postponed from October 3ist to November 7th? 

Ans. I never heard that it w^as, and have no reason to think 
that it was. 

6th. Whether you remem^ber that Dr. Jackson said that he 
had spoken with Dr. Warren about the use of ether in that opera- 
tion of an amputation, or had arranged it with Dr. Warren ? 
Ans. I have no recollection of it. 

7th. Whether you remember that Dr. Jackson, at this meeting 
in March with you, asked if you v/ould write to him a note in 
reference to the operation on Alice Mohan? 

Ans. I do not recollect such a request. Still, I can't say that 
it never was made. I certainly never wrote the note. 

8th. Whether, you remember that in the fluid, at first its sub- 
stance being unknown, used at the hospital for inhalation in 
October, 1846, there was some aromatic substance mingled with 
it? If aye, what was this aromatic substance? 

Ans. I only saw it used once in October at the time I ope- 
rated, and befoie I used it again, I knew what it was. I re- 
member no aromatic substance mingled with it. I took no 
notice of it. 

9th. Whether you remember that after an operation during 
the early use of ether at the hospital, in the fell and winter of 
1846 and 1847, it frequently happened, black blood being seen 
from the arteries of the etherized patient, that Dr. Warren and 
others of the surgeons, in remarks to the class of students, pointed 



580 

out the black or dark blood, in connection with what was said 
of the asphyxiated state of the patient? 

Ans. I recollect that in some cases, in our early operations, 
the blood was dark- colored, wbich I attributed to a deficiency of 
atmospheric air. 

10th. Whether, or not, before Dr. Jackson brought the bags of 
oxygen to the hospital, casts of asphyxia had so occurred that 
means were sought for, for a speedy recovery of patients so af- 
fected ? 

Ans. I don't know that anything more than the ordinary means 
were sought for, or that the subject excited much conversation. 

llth. Will you please, briefly, to describe the inhalers and their 
valves ? Were the valves fastened with springs ? 

Ans. It was a glass globe, in which was inserted a sponge sat- 
urated with ether; witn a tube at one end, to admit atmos])herio 
air, with a vahe to prevent the escape of the ether, and, on the 
opposite side, a mouth-piece with a valve to prevent the breath 
of the patient entering the globe, and with an outlet in the tube, 
to allow the escape of the expired air. I cannot say whether the 
valves were fastened with springs. 

12th. Whether, or not, chioroiorm is a dangerous agent for iu' 
halation ? Why ? How is this ? 

Ans. I think it is dangerous. 1 regard it as such, and I am in- 
clined to believe that the opinion of Malgaigne is correct — that 
it is a poison, aaid that insensibility is the lirst stage of its poison- 
ous action. 

13th. Whether chloric ether is a solution of chloroform in al- 
cohol ? 

AnSi I believe it to be such. 

14th. Whether chloric ether is not, to some extent, like chlo- 
roform, dangerous ? 

Ans. I regard it as such. 

15th. Whether, in using chloric ether with a wet sponge, the 
dampness of the sponge separates the alcohol from the chloroform, 
and leaves the chloroform in the texture of the sponge to be in- 
haled? 

Ans. I should have no doubt that v/ould be the case, from the 
great affinity between w^ater and alcohol. 

16th. Whether, or not, it frequently happens, in dental and 
surgical operations on etherized patients, that, after the state of 
total insensibility, there is a period of consciousness while there 
is no sense of pain ? 

Ans. I have seen a state of partial consciousness while the 
patient remained insensible ; and, on the other hand, I have seen 
patients whose sensibility was restored, apparently, before the 
consciousness. 

17th. Does it not very frequently and ordinarily happen, that 
parturition, under the influence of inhaled ether, takes place 
without? any sense of pain, where perfect consciousness continues ? 

Ans. I am not sufficiently experienced on the subject to state. 

18th. Was it taught, or laid down in the books, before Septem- 
ber 30, 1846, that inhalation of pure sulphuric ether could be at- 



581 

tended with safety to such an extent as to produce insensibility 
to pain ? 

Ans. I am not aware that there was anytliing said upon the 
subject. Still, there may have been. 

19th. Whether, or not, the ether of the shops — the ether of 
commerce — by reason of its impurities, is unfit for inhalation, 
where it is intended to induce a state of insensibility to pain ? 

Ans. I am not sufficiently familiar with the ether of the shops 
to answer that question correctly. 

20th. Whether or not, in your opinion, the purity of the sul- 
phuric ether from alcohol and acids, and the due admixture of 
atmospheric air, are not among the important particulars em- 
braced in the discovery of etherization ? 

Ans. They are among the important particulars connected with 
the discovery, I should think. I think, if we did not care to 
have atmospheric air, w^e should kill our patients with asphyxia. 

21st. Whether or not, any person can be the author of a dis- 
covery in the inductive sciences, without eilher originating any 
new idea, or devising the m.eans of establishing the truth of a 
conjecture, whether more or less probable, previously brought to 
view by another person ? 

Ans. No, I should think not ; but anybody else can answer 
that as well as I can. 

22d. Whether, or not, you are familiar v^ath the facts and early 
history of the publication of etherization, in October, 1846, and 
the winter and spring follovv^ing ? 

Ans. I am acquainfed with all the facts connected with the 
practical application of the discovery. I have not read all the 
pubhcations on the subject. 

23d. Whether, or not, you can specify any new idea connected 
with the discovery of etherization first originated by Dr. Morton, 
or any new eixperiinent devised by him, by which that discovery 
was established ? 

Ans. Tne only fact was the practical apphcation of the dis- 
covery. The experiment was his administering it to a person aad 
removing a tooth without pain. It had never been done before, 
I suspect, by any person. 

24th. Wnether, or not, you remember that, at the operation at 
the hospital, of 2d January, the fact that no black or dark col- 
ored blood was seen to flow from the ai'teries ? 

Ans. 1 dont remember anything about it ? 

2Dth. Is not the full etherized state state generally one of agree- 
able dreams ? 

Ans. That used to be the condition, but, when we carry it 
further, I think it is a state of insensibiUty and imconsciousness. 

26th. Suppose that a person knew that, by reason of a certain 
process he was insensible to pain in the nerves of sensation hi 
his throat, could he not infer from this fact that, if he repeated 
the same process, he would beconae insensible to pain produced 
in another part of his body, as for instance, a burn or blist-er on 
his arm ? 



582 

Ans. I should not think that would be a legitimate conclusion, 
because a wound produces a different kind of pain from that 
which arisen from the effect upon an uninjured part of the body. 

27th. Do you concur with Whewell, the historian of the in- 
ductive sciences, in the following opinion of his : — " I do not 
concede that experiments of verification, made after a discovery 
has been clearly brought to view by one person, and devised by 
the discoverer, and committed by him for performance to another, 
give the operator a right to claim the discovery as his own"? 

Ans. If the discovery has been fairly made I should agree 
with him. The only question would be, w^hether a vague notion 
of this kind would constitute a discovery. 

28th. Is not a man, devoted to scientific research, likely to 
draw inferences, more or less probable, from any and every 
observation, casual or otherwise, he may make, which points 
more or less clearly to a new scientific truth ? 

Ans. I should think so. 

29th. Can you state about how long it is that Dr. Jackson 
has been retired from surgical and medical practice ? 

Ans. No, I cannot. 

30th. Did you know of Dr. Jackson's engagements in 1846 
and 1847 ? His occupation in surveys for the United States 
Government ? How much was he away from Boston ? 

Ans. No, sir ; I only generally knew that he was employed 
by the government in the survey. 

31st. Whether or not the pain arising from inhalation of 
chlorine gas is severe or agonising ? 

Ans. Yes. It is very distressing to the patient*. 

GEO. HAYWARD. 

Commonwealth of Massachusetts, ) 
Suffolk Coimty. ) 

We certify that the foregoing is a true copy of the deposition 
in perpetuam, of George Hay ward, taken before us upon the 
petition of Wm. T. G. Morton, under the statutes of this com- 
monwealth. GEO. T. CURTIS, 

J. P. PUTNAM, 
Tiuo Justices of the Peace and Counsellors at Law. 
Boston, January 2d, 1853. 



APPENDIX 



TESTIMONY IN RELATION TO THE CLAIMS OP 

DR. HORACE WELLS, WITH EVIDENCE 

EXPLANATORY THERETO. 



State of Connecticut, 
County of Hartford, 
I, Samuel A. Cooley, a citizen of Hartford, county of Hart» 
ford, State of Connecticut, depose and say that on the eve- 
ning of the 10th day of December, in the year 1844, that one 
G. Q. Colton gave a public exhibition in the Union Hall in 
the said city of Hartford, to show the effect produced upon 
the human system by the inhaling of nitrous oxyd or laughing 
gas; and, in accordance with the request of several gentle- 
men, the said Colton did give a private exhibition on the 
morning of December 11, 1844, at the said hall; and that 
the deponent then inhaled a portion of said nitrous oxyd gas, 
to ascertain its peculiar eiFect upon his system ; and that 
there were present, at that time, the said Colton, Horace 
Wells, C. F. Colton, Benjamin Moulton, and several other gen- 
tlemen, to the deponent at this time unknown ; and that the 
said deponent, while under the influence of the said gas, did 
run against and throw down several of the settees in said 
Hall, thereby throwing himself down, and causing several 
severe bruises upon his knees, and other parts of his person ; 
and that, after the peculiar influence of said gas had subsid- 
ed, his friends then present asked if he had not injured him- 
self, and then directed his attention to the acts which he had 
committed unconsciously while under the operation of said 
gas. He then found by examination that his knees were se- 
verely injured ; and he then exposed his knees to those pre- 
sent, and found that the skin was severely abrased and 
broken ; and that the deponent then remarked " that he be- 
lieved that a person might get into a fight with several per- 
sons and not know when he was hurt, so unconscious was a 
person of p'lin while under the influence of the said gas ;'* 
and the said deponent further remarked, " that he believed 
that if a person could be restrained, that he could un- 
dergo a severe surgical operation, without feeling any pain 
at the time.'* Dr. Wells then remarked, " that he believed 
that a person could have a tooth extracted while under its in- 
fluerce, and not experience any pain ;" and the said Wells 
further remarked, " that he had a wisdom tooth that troubled 
him exceedingly, and if the said G. Q,. Colton would fill his 
bag with some of the gas, he would go up to his office and 
try the experiment," which the said Colton did; and the said 
Wells, C, F. Colton, and G. Q,. Colton, and your deponent, 



2 

and others at this time unknown to said deponent, proceeded 
to the office of said Wells ; and that said Wells there inhaled 
the gas, and a tooth was extracted by Dr. Riggs, a dentist 
then present ; and that the said Wells, after the effect of the 
gas had subsided, exclaimed, "A new era in tooth pulling ;" 
and the deponent doth further declare, that the said Wells 
and the deponent then advised with each other, and pro- 
ceeded to construct an apparatus, to be located in New York 
or Boston, to carry on exclusively the business of tooth pull- 
ing without pain ; and that the said Wells and deponent did 
experiment, and your deponent did manufacture for the said 
Wells certain articles to perfect the operation of said gas ; 
and that the said Wells ^ assisted by your deponent, did extract 
several teeth for different individuals to your deponent un- 
known ; and that your deponent had several offers to con- 
struct apparatus for different surgeons and dentists, but which 
offers he refused, relying upon the verbal agreement of said 
Wells ; and that your deponent did administer the said nitrous 
oxyd gas to individuals who underwent severe surgical opera- 
tions, without experiencing any pain ; and your deponent 
doth further declare, that the said Wells did visit Boston to 
complete the arrangement, understood by your deponent to 
be the introduction of this gas, as an anaesthetic remedy, for 
the extraction of teeth, and the performing of surgical ope- 
rations, without pain to the patient, while under the influence 
of said gas ; and that, after an absence of some days, the 
said Wells returned from Boston to Hartford, and said to your 
deponent, that he had so much other business to attend to 
that he could not devote any more of his time to the business, 
but advised your deponent to go on ; and that your deponent 
could make money out of the business. Your deponent fur- 
ther affirms and declares, that he gave several public lectures 
and exhibitions at the Union and City Halls, in said city of 
Hartford ; also in various other places in said State of Con- 
necticut ; also in Massachusetts and New York ; and that 
your deponent did always explain to his audiences the wonder- 
ful effects of this gas in surgical operations ; and that your 
deponent did believe that the day was not far distant when 
the said gas would be brought into general use for said pur- 
poses^ viz: "the performance of surgical operations without 
pain or suffering to the patient." Your deponent further de- 
clares, that after some time past in lecturing on the subject, 
he learned by the public prints that some person or persons, 
to your deponent now unknown, had laid claim to the dis- 
covery of the properties of said gas. Your deponent fur- 
ther affirms, that he, having other business to attend to, re- 
linquished the exhibition of its effects, but occasionally ad- 
ministered the said gas when requested to hy surgeons and den- 
tists ; and your deponent further affirms, and solemnly de- 
clares, that he believes that the peculiar effects of the said 



nitrous oxyd gas was unknown until the remarks made by 
him at the time aforesaid ; and that the first application 
thereof was made by the said Wells, in company with your 
deponent ; and he further says, that the petitioners now be- 
fore your committee did not originate or discover the pecu- 
liar properties of said gas, and knew nothing thereof, until 
the visit of said Wells to Boston ; and your deponent doth 
further depose and say, that the reason for his not urging his 
claim for said discovery, has been the want of the requisite 
means to enable him so to do, although often advised by his 
friends to move in the matter. 



Dear Sir : I have had an opportunity of perusing a state- 
ment which you forwarded to Washington, in aid of the claim 
of the widow of the late Dr. Horace Wells to the discovery 
of her husband of the anaesthetic properties of nitrous oxyd 
gas. 

Although a stranger to you personally, I am interested in 
the subject to which your statement relates, because I claim 
the discovery of the anaesthetic properties of ether, and the 
priority and merit of these discoveries have frequently been 
brought into discussion. 

I have therefore taken the liberty of addressing to you this 
letter for the purpose of drawing from you, upon the several 
points contained in your statement, more precise and definite 
information than it at present conveys. If you will be kind 
enough to answer the inquiries which I subjoin it cannot in- 
jure the lady in whose behalf you have given your evidence, 
but may tend to settle a dispute in which it is not too much to 
say that the whole civilized world is interested. I notice in the 
statement to which I refer, you say that in a private exhibi- 
tion given by G. Q.. Colton, in December, 1844, to show the 
effects produced upon the human system by inhaling nitrous 
oxyd gas, and after the gas had been administered to your- 
self, that in consequence of throwing yourself down and 
tumbling against settees, while under the effects, that you 
found the skin upon your knees severely abrased and broken. 
You further remark, that you exposed your knees in this con- 
dition to the spectators. 



1st. Now, sir, will you be kind enough to name, if you re^ 
member, any person to whom you made this exposure? 

Farther on in your statement, you say that in conjunction 
with Horace Wells, "you proceeded to construct an apparatus 
to be located in New York or Boston to carry on exclusively 
the business of tooth pulling without pain. Upon this topic 
I wish also to suggest a few inquiries. 

2d. Did not you and Wells enter into a partnership for this 
purpose? 

I find also in your statement as follows : " Said Wells, as- 
sisted by your deponent, did extract several teeth for different 
individuals, to your deponent unknown." 

3d. Are not these the four experiments embraced in the 
pamphlet prepared by Dr. Wells to substantiate his claim? 

4th. Do you know of any other experiments, except those 
above referred to which Dr. Wells made prior to the discovery 
of the ansesthetic properties of ether? 

You go on to say that you administered " nitrous oxyd gas 
to several individuals, who underwent severe surgical opera- 
tions without pain." 

5th. Was not all these subsequent to the discovery of the 
ansesthetic properties of ether in 1846? 

I find that after narrating that Dr. Wells went on to Boston 
for the purpose of exhibiting the discovery in that city, "the 
said Wells returned to Hartford, and said to your deponent 
that he had so much other business to attend to that he could 
not devote any more of his time to the business, but advised 
your deponent to go on." 

6th. Novv^ 1 would respectfully beg leave to ask if Dr. 
Wells, after his return from Boston, did not expressl}^ declare 
that he was disappointed in the pain-relieving properties of 
nitrous oxyd, and did not state to you that he abandoned the 
thing as a failure, and did his advice to you to go on mean in 
lecturing upon nitrous oxyd, and in administering it to people 
for their amusement and gratification? 

You further declare that in the public exhibitions which 
you subsequently gave of the effects of nitrous oxyd, " you 
always explained to your audiences the wonderful effects of 
this gas in surgical operations." 

7th. Can you name any individual who heard j'ou make the 
above explanation ? 

You say, moreover, " that you administered gas when re- 
quested to do so by surgeons and dentists." 

8th. Was this not subsequent to the ether discovery? 

9th. Did you know of Dr. Wells going to Boston soon after 
I discovered the anaesthetic properties of ether in 1846, and 
did you converse with him on his return about the mattefj 
and did he then make any claim to that discovery? 

10th. From what you see and knew of Dr. Weils before he 
went to, and after his return from, Boston, in January, 1845, 



will you say whether, as regards his health, there was any 
material change? 

Another question, and I will relieve you from this list of 
interrogations, which I have deemed it my duty to suggest, in 
order to draw out all the information you possess upon this 
important truth. 

nth. In any of your experiments did you ever use ether for 
the purpose of relieving the pain in surgical operations? 

If 5'ou will be kind enough to answer the questions which 
I have thus taken the liberty of proposing, the whole matter, 
so far as it lies within your knowledge will be brought out, 
and the information supplied for forming an intelligent and 
reliable opinion about the matter in controversy. 
Very respectfully, 

WM. T. G. MORTON. 

Samuel A. Cooley. 



Hartford, October 10, 1852. 

Dear Sir: — I have received your communication of Octo- 
ber, and before replying to the questions you suggest, I desire 
to say a word explanatory of the statement to which you 
allude. 

Having understood that the subject of the discovery of an 
anaesthetic agent was before a committee of Congress, I ad- 
dressed a note to the Hon. Charles Chapman, member from 
this district, for the purpose of inquiring whether any informa- 
tion which I possessed would throw any light upon the matter. 
To this letter I received for reply, that any information which 
would substantiate the claim of Mrs. Wells would be thank- 
fully received. In accordance with this intimation, I prepared 
the statement to which you refer in your letter, and forwarded 
the same to Washington. 

I have no desire to withhold any information which I 
possess, and had I known at the time that the inquiries which 
you now make would have any bearing upon the subject, I 
should have been willing to have embraced, in my original 
statement, the answers which I now give to j^our several 
questions, which I will answer in their own order : 

Ans. 1. In my statement you will find there was present, 
at the time, G. Q. Colton, C. F. Colton, Benjamin Moulton, 



Dr. Wells, and others, to whom I exposed my limbs ; and 1 
remember going that day into the office of Dr. Greenleaf, 
dentist, of this city, and there showing him my shins and 
knees, and asked him to try the experiment of tooth-pulling, 
explaining to him the effects that I thought it would have 
upon the system. He declined doing so, for fear of injuring 
some one by inhaling of the gas. 

You ask me " if I went into partnership with Wells to pros- 
ecute this business]" 
Vide Dr. Ans. 2. In answer, I would say that Wells and myself en- 
Sn '^n'^'the ^^^®^ ^^^^ ^ Verbal agreement to go on and construct an 
Hartford cour- apparatus, and make purchases of materials for the full com- 
fS deration of pletion of manufacturing th^ gas, v/iththe intention to estab- 
IheSr'^'lish an office in New York and Boston— one of us to reside in 
each of those places. Our plan was to manufacture the gas 
ourselves, which was to be kept in a gasometer, in an adjoining 
room, with a pipe leading from it to the operating chair. By 
this means w^e expected to keep the whole matter a secret, 
and under our sole control, which would insure us a large and 
lucrative business. 

Ans. 3. As regards the experiments of extracting teeth for 
several individuals, I believe that those four experiments in 
Wells's pamphlet w^ere among the number, but at present could 
not state positively, as after I had made the gas for Wells I 
did not remain to witness the operations. I manufactured the 
gas for Wells, and not until two or three weeks before his 
death, in January, 1848, did I impart to him fully the secret 
of the improvements, and manner of its preparation. Some 
little time before his death. Wells was in Hartford, and stated 
to me that he was about to enter into his dental business in 
New York, and offered me fifty dollars per week to go there 
as his assistant ; and it was at this time that I gave him full 
information about the preparation of the component parts of 
the gas. In pursuance of an arrangement with Wells while 
in Hartford, I met him in New York the week before he died, 
in reference to going in with him. At this time Wells was 
engaged in auction sales of pictures he had brought from 
Paris, in the spring of 1847. I assisted him somewhat in 
selling, while there. I left Wells apparently well, and actively 
engaged about his business. On Friday I returned to Hart- 
ford, and on the next Monday I heard of his death. 

Ans. 4. I was not present ; neither do I know of any ex- 
periments or operations performed by him, under the influ- 
ence of the gas, after his return from Boston, and prior to the 
introduction of ether as an ansesthetic agent. 

Ans. 5. I did not exhibit the nitrous oxyd for the pur- 
pose of producing insensibility to pain, until subsequent to the 
alleged discovery of the anaesthetic properties of ether, by 
you, in 1846. 

Ans. 6. The first intimation I had that Dr. Wells did not 
intend to carry out our partnership arrangement with me, 



was when he informed me, several weeks after this arrange- 
ment was entered into between us, that he had just returned 
from Boston, where he had made a public experiment which 
had proved a failnre. He then said to me that he was dis- 
appointed in the effects of the gas, and that it would not op- 
erate as we had hoped and thought it would, as there was no 
certainty to be placed upon it ; and, consequently, he should 
abandon it, as he had so much other business to attend to, 
and as the gas would not operate in all cases alike, and there- 
fore could not be trusted. He advised me to go on with my 
exhibitions, and thought I could make money out of them, 
and that, although he had got through with his experiments 
in the business, he would assist me in any way he could, in 
order that I might succeed in my lectures ; and suggested to 
me to connect with my lectures and administering the gas, 
mesmerism, and the use of a card of questions which he had 
prepared — so arranged that a correct answer could be given, 
by a person in an adjoining room, as to the time of day, &c., 
by the particular manner in which the question was asked. 
Feeling some confidence that by following his suggestions I 
should realize sufiicient from the lectures to reimburse me for 
my time and expenses while in company with him, the mat- 
ter was then dropped between us, and I pursued my lectures. 

Ans. 7. To this question, as to whether I can name any 
person that was present at my exhibitions, that heard me 
make the statement of the wonderful effects produced by the 
gas upon the system, I can call to mind but one at present, 
and that is Mr. Henry Moore, a clerk in the post office in this 
city ; although a great number of others have spoken to me 
since about the matter, yet I cannot at this moment call them 
to mind by their names. 

Ans, 8. Yes, it was after the ether discovery, in 1840, that ^^g^'^^^^f 
I administered the gas for surgeons and dentists — that then iief, ad idem. 
being an attempt, by us all, to renew the experiments, as the 
public and ourselves had lost confidence and doubted the 
practicability of the thing, until the successful introduction of 
ether. I administered gas for Dr. Ellsworth, an intimate 
friend of Wells, and also to several others ; but the last time 
that I exhibited it was to a lady at Dr. Greenleaf's office, which, 
in a great measure, proved a failure, and then ether and chlo- 
roform assumed the place of the gas, and operations were 
more successful in the use of them ; and since then I have 
had but little to do with the matter, as other business has 
taken up my time and attention. 

Ans. 9. I knew of Dr. Wells going to Boston, soon after the 
noise in the papers of the discovery of the effects of ether by 
you, in 1846, and had a conversation with him, on his return, 
about your discovery. He made no claim to me of the dis- 
covery being his ; but, on the contrary, expressed regrets that 
we had not continued our experiments to a successful termi- 
nation. 



8 

Ans. 10. I discovered no material change in the health of 
Dr. Wells, after his return from Boston, in January, 1845 ; and 
he followed his professional business, the same as usual, until 
early in the spring, when he commenced getting up a pan- 
orama or exhibition of natural history, and v*^hich he exhib- 
ited for some time in the City Hall, in this city. 

Ans. 11. You ask me if in any of our experiments ether 
was used for the purpose of relieving pain. To this question 
I would answer no — that in our experiments Dr. Wells and 
myself never exhibited ether to produce that effect. 
Yours, respectfully, 

SAMUEL A, C00i:.EY, 

Dr. MoETON. 



Correspondence between Drs. Morton and Wells, in which the 
former announces Ms discovery in 1846. 

"Boston, October 19, 1846. 

" Fbiend Wells — Dear Sir : I write to inform you that I 
have discovered a preparation, by inhaling which, a person is 
thrown into sound sleep. The time required to produce sleep 
is only a few moments, and the time in which persons re- 
main asleep can be regulated at pleasure. While in this state 
the severest surgical or dental operations may be performed, 
the patient not experiencing the slightest pain. I have per- 
fected it, and am now about sending out agents to dispose of 
the right to use it. I will dispose of a right to an individual 
to use it in his ov/n practice alone, or for a town, country or 
State. My object in writing you is to know if you would not 
like to visit New York and the other cities, and dispose of 
rights upon shares. I have used the compound in more than 
one hundred and sixty cases, in extracting teeth, and I have 
been invited to administer to patients in the Massachusetts 
General Hospital, and have succeeded in every case. 

" The Professors, Warren and Hayward, have given me 
certificates to this effect. 1 have administered it at the Hos- 
pital, in the presence of the students and physicians— the 
room for operations being as full as posible. For fur- 
ther particulars I will refer you to extracts from the daily 
journals of this city, which I forward to you. 

"Respectfully yours, WM. T. G. MORTON." 



Reply to the foregoing letter, 

" Hartford, Connecticut, October 20, 1846. of Hor'S 
"Dr. Morton— jDe«r>S'zV; Your letter dated yesterday, is Sirnk'^^'^S 
just received, and I hasten to answer it, for I fear you will ^«™«p»^^°«f^ 
adopt a method in disposing of your rights, which will defeat admissions. 
your object. Before you make any arrangements whatever, 
I wish to see you. I think I will be in Boston the first of next 
week — probably Monday night. If the operation of admin- 
istering the gas is not attended with too much trouble, and 
will produce the effect you state, it will, undoubtedly, be a 
fortune to you, provided it is rightly managed. 

" Yours, in haste, H. WELLS," 



Testimony of R. H. Eddy as to the interview between Drs, 
Morton and Wells. 

"Boston, Fehuary 11 th, 1847. 
" R. H. Dana, Esq — Dear Sir : In reply to your note of this 
morning, I have to state that about the time I was engaged 
in preparing the papers for the procural of the patent, in the 
United States, on the discovery of Dr. Morton for preventing 
pain in surgical opererations, by the inhalation of the vapor 
of sulphuric ether, I was requested by Dr. Morton to call at 
his ofiice to have an interview with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells, who was then on a visit to this city, and who. Dr. 
Morton thought, might be able to render him valuable ad- 
vice and assistance in regard to the mode of disposing of 
privileges to use the discovery. Accordingly I had an inter- 
view with Dr. Wells. During such meeting we conversed 
freely on the discovery, and in relation to the experiments Dr. 
Wells had been witness to in the office of Dr. Morton. The 
details of our conversation I do not recollect sufficiently to at- 
tempt to relate them, but the whole of it, and the manner of 
Dr. Wells at the time, led me, in no respect, to any suspicion 
that he (Dr. Wells) had ever before been aware of the then 
discovered effect of ether in annuling pain during a surgical 



10 

operation. Dr. Wells doubted the ability of Dr. Morton to pro- 
cure a patent — not on the ground that he (Dr. Morton) was 
not the first and original discoverer, but that he (Dr. Wells) 
believed the discovery vi^as not a legal subject for a patent. 
He advised him, hov^^ever, to make application for one, and to 
dispose of as many licenses as he could, while such applica- 
tion might be pending ; in fact, to make as much money out 
of the discovery as he could, while the excitement in regard 
to it might last. I must confess that when, some time after- 
wards, I heard of the pretentions of Dr. Wells to be consi- 
dered the discoverer of the aforementioned effect of ether, 
I was struck with great surprise, for his whole conversation 
with me, at the time of our interview, led me to the belief 
that he fully and entirely recognized the discovery to have 
been made by Dr. Morton, or at least partly by him and partly 
by Dr. C. T. Jackson, as I then supposed. 

" Respectfully yours, 

"R. H.EDDY." 



First publication by H, Wells. 

From the Hartford Courant. 

Hartford, December 7, 1846. 
Mr. Editor : You are aware that there has been much said 
of late respecting a gas, which, when inhaled, so paralyzes 
the system as to render it insensible to pain. The Massa- 
chusetts General Hospital have adopted its use, and amputa- 
tions are now being performed without pain. Surgeons 
generally, throughout the country, are anxiously waiting to 
know what it is, that they may make a trial of it, and many 
have already done so with uniform success. As Drs. Charles 
T. Jackson and W. T. G. Morton, of Boston, claim to be the 
originators of this invaluable discovery, Iwill give a short 
history of its introduction, that the public may decide to 
whom belongs the honor. 
seethetesti- While rcasoniug from analogy, I was led to believe that 
S'^Jo °the^tme the inhaling of any exhilerating gas, sufficient to cause a 
SS^expt^- great nervous excitement, would so paralyze the system as to 
Timent, p. 1 toj-endcr it insensible to pain, or nearly so, for it is well known 
that when an individual is very much excited by passion, he 
scarcely ft^els the severe wound which may at the time be 
inflicted, and the individual who is said to be " dead drunk," 



11 

may receive severe blows, apparently without the least pain, 
and when in this state is much more tenacious of life than 
w^hen in the natural state. I accordingly resolved to try the 
experiment of inhaling an exhilirating gas myself, for the 
purpose of having a tooth extracted. I then obtained some 
nitrous oxyd gas, and requested Dr. J. M. Riggs to perform 
the operation, at the moment when I should give the signal, 
resolving to have the tooth extracted before losing all con- 
sciousness. This experiment proved to be perfectly success- 
ful — it was attended with no pain whatever. I then per- 
formed the same operation on twelve or fifteen others, with 
the same results. 

I was so much elated with the discovery, that I started See partner- 
immediately for Boston, resolving to give it into the hands ofpag^g'^f^^^'^ 
proper persons, without expecting to derive any pecuniary 
benefit therefrom. I called on Drs. Warren and Haywood, 
and made known to them the result of the experiments I had 
made. They appeared to be interested in the matter, and 
treated me with much kindness and attention. I was invited 
by Mr. Warren to address the medical class upon the subject, 
at the close of his lecture. 

I accordingly embraced the opportunit}^, and took occasion 
to remark that the same result would be produced, let the 
nervous system be excited sufficiently by any means what- 
ever; that I had made use of nitrous oxyd gas, or protoxyde 
of nitrogen, as being the most harmless. I was then invited Not confirm- 
to administer it to one of the patients, who was expecting to dence. ^"^ ^"^ 
have a limb amputated. 

I remained some two or three days in Boston for this pur- 
pose, but the patient decided not to have the operation per- 
formed at that time. It was then proposed that I should 
administer it to an individual, for the purpose of extracting a 
tooth. Accordingly, a large number of students, with several 
physicians, met to see the operation performed — one of their 
number to be a patient. Unfortunately for the experiment, 
the gas bag was by mistake' withdrawn much too soon, and 
he was but partially under its influence when the tooth was 
extracted. He testified that he experienced some pain, but 
not as much as usually attends the operation. As there was 
no other patient present, that the experiment might be 
repeated, and as several expressed their opinion that it was 
a humbug affair, (which, in fact, was all the thanks I got for 
this gratuitous service,) I accordingly left the next morning 
for home. While in Boston, I conversed with Drs. Charles T. 
Jackson and W. T. G. Morton upon the subject, both of whom 
admitted it to be entirely new to them. Dr. Jackson ex- 
pressed much surprise that severe operations could be per- 
formed without pain, and these are the individuals who claim 
to be the inventors. 



12 

' Note that no When I commenced giving the gas, I noticed one very 

To the sincT^ai^ I'eniarkable circumstance attending it, v^hich was, that those 

kged fact^th^at ^^j^^ ^^^ dov^m Tcsolving to havo an operation performed under 

>vas performed its influencc, had no disposition to exert the muscular system 

DnMarcy?"^ ^ in the Icast, but v^^ould remain quiet as if partially asleep. 

Whereas, if the same individuals were to inhale the gas under 

any other circumstances, it would seem impossible to restrain 

them from over exertion. 

I would here remark, that when I was deciding what ex- 
hilirating agent to use for this purpose, it immediately occurred 
to me that it would be best to use nitrous oxyd gas, or sul- 
phuric ether. I advised with Dr. Marcy, of this city, and by 
his advice I continued to use the former, as being the least 
likely to do injury, although it was attended with more 
trouble in its preparation. If Drs. Jackson and Morton claim 
that they are something else, I reply that it is the same in 
principle if not in name, and they cannot use anything which 
will produce more satisfactory results ; and I made these 
results known to both of these individuals, more than a year 
since. 

After making the above statement of facts, I leave it for 
the public to decide to whom belongs the honor of the dis- 
covery. 

Yours, truly, 

HORACE WELLS, Surgeon Dentist. 



Hartford, November 7, 1852. 
Dear Sir: Yours, of October 15th, is before me, and in 
answer to your several inquiries in regard to my connexion 
with Dr. Wells, and also as to my information on facts that 
may have any bearing upon the discovery of the effects pro- 
duced by inhaling nitrous oxyd gas. In answer to your ques- 
tion, I would state that I wish to render justice to all parties 
seeCooiy. p. conccmed. Havinsr been connected in business with Dr. Wells, 

1, and Ells- , , . . P • i i • i i 

worth. and bemg very mtimate with him, we had a great many con- 

versations together about the effect of the gas, and in those 
conversations he always told me he derived his first idea of 
the matter from remarks made by Dr. S. A. Cooley, at a private 
exhibition of laughing gas, given at the Union Hall, in this 



13 

city, in the winter of 1844 or 45 ; and that, from those remarks, 
and what he witnessed himself, he immediately applied it to 
his own business. 

During the winter of 1845 and spring of 1846, Dr. Wells gee Roberts. 
made application for a patent for a "shower bath," in his 
name, which Col. Thos. Roberts claimed to be equally inter- 
ested in. Their respective claim was left to the decision of 
Francis Parson, Esq., of this city, and decided in Dr. Wells' 
favor. I then made arrangements with Dr. Wells to travel 
and dispose of rights to manufacture his baths, and at that 
time I considerei that he had abandoned the thing entirely, 
as he expressed him.self to me that the operation in some See cooJy. 
cases proved a perfect failure, and spoke of his unsuccessful 
trial in Boston in 1845; he also stated that he had received a 
letter from you, saying that you desired all the information 
about the matter that he possessed, as you believed a stir 
might be made in the business, and some money made out of 
it. He told me that he had written you to go ahead, and any^ 
thing Dr. " Wells " could do for you he would do with pleas- 
ure ; he also told me he though, you could put it through, if 
any body could, for you had brass enough for anything. In 
November, 1846, he sold out his shower-bath busines to Col. seeS. g, 
Roberts, and about that time a sale of paintings came off atSoii and vVo- 
Union Hall, and sold at big prices ; he knowing what they 
could be bought for in Paris, at once made up his mind to 
visit Paris on that business, and was anxious for me to act 
auctioneer, (which business I was in at that time,) in the sale 
of them in this country. In three or four weeks he started for 
Paris. About this time the effects of ether had become public 
in Boston, and he expressed himself as being very sorry that ^^® ^""'^-^^ 
he had not prosecuted his experiments to a successful termina- 
tion ; and he also regretted his stopping the matter when he 
did, for he thought an immense fortune might be made out 
of the business, and that the discovery would reflect great 
honor upon the discoverer. I think of nothing further at this 
time. 

Respectfully yours, 

a HOWELL OLMSTEAD, Jn 

To Doctor Morton. 



P. S. John B. Corning, of this city, was a partner of mine 
in 1846 and 1847 ; he may give you some information that ban 
escaped my memory. G, H. O* 



14 



Hartford, November 4, 1852. 

Dear Sir : Yours of the 2d inst. is received, and, in reply, 
I have to say that I have knowledge in regard to Dr. Wells 
going to Paris. The idea was suggested to him by a sale of 
paintings, by J. Eddy, in this city, near the close of Novem- 
ber, 1846. 
seeoimstead, Dr. Wclls was prcscnt at Eddy's sale, and in some way, as 
p- ^3. he informed me, learned the cost of the paintings, and thought 

a great deal of money might be made in going to Paris and 
getting up the paintings, and selling at auction; and that he 
intended to go into the business extensively. 

In two or three weeks after Eddy's sale. Dr. Wells started 
for Paris. I well understood from Wells his object in visiting 
Paris was to get pictures, and that only. Wells was gone 
until March, 1847, when he returned, and called on me at 
Hartford, and wanted to give us (BoUes and Roberts) large 
orders for frames for his pictures — something like one hun- 
dred and fifty per month. 

At this time he told me that after he arrived at Paris, and 
was prosecuting his picture business, he learned that Dr. 
Jackson, of Boston, was making claim to the gas discovery, 
and that the medical societies there were about to award a 
medal for the discovery, and that he claimed the discovery, 
and was advised by Dr. Brewster, of Paris, to hurry home, 
and get up his evidence, and forward him, and he would pre- 
sent his claims ; also, that he was introduced in Paris by Dr. 
See Brewster's Brewster, and great notice was taken of him, and he was 
made the great lion of the day. He told me that he thought 
that Dr. Brewster w^ould be able to get him something hand- 
some from the different medical societies there. 

After 1 saw Wells in Hartford, and in two or three weeks 
after his return from Paris, I saw him in New York, and had 
conversation with him about his picture business, and went 
with him to his attorney at the custom-house, with reference 
to his getting out his pictures. 

We made him several hundred dollars worth of frames ; 
could not furnish him enough, as he wanted them, and di- 
rected him to Waller & Kreps, Broadway, New York, and 
Henry Collins, 29.5 Pear street, picture frame manufacturers, 
who m.anufactured largely for him. 

In answer to your last inquiry, I will say I have no recol- 
lection of ever hearing Wells claim the gas discovery, till 
after his return from Paris. 

Truly yours, 

S. S. BOLLES. 



15 



To the Members of the Honorable Senate and House of Repre- 
sentatives of the U. S. of A. in Congress assembled : 

We, the undersigned, learning that a report has been, or is see the exam- 
to be made, by a Committee of Congress, awarding the honor sfg^ne*!? of thu 
of the discovery of the use of ansesthetic agents in surgical Sr^JIJe'u.'s^ 
operations, to W. T. G. Morton, of Boston, and recommending t^ommissionet 
an appropriation of one hundred thousand dollars to the said knowledge ol" 
Morton, for the said discovery — w^ould respectfully suggest : ^^^^^' 

That, in view of this appropriation, designed to remunerate 
the person who has thus benefitted mankind, we desire that 
the claims of Horace Wells, in the matter of this discovery, 
should receive just consideration, believing, as we do, that to 
him, and him alone, is the honor and award due. 

Mrs. Wells, the widow of said Horace Wells, (who is now 
in dependant circumstances, supporting herself and little son, 
in part by her own exertions, and in part by the aid of her 
friends,) has what we consider ample proofs to substantiate 
the claim of her husband, but cannot well afford the expense 
of contesting the title of honor alone, especially as that we 
believe is already generally conceded to Dr. Wells, by the 
profession in this country, out of Massachusetts. 

Dr. Wells died at the moment when his success was about 
being fully established, his claim having been allowed by the 
Connecticut Legislature, the Medical Society of Paris, and by 
many distinguished surgeons throughout the Union, among 
whom were the late Kearney Rogers, of New York, and Prof. 
Mott. 

His unfortunate death left no one to defend his cause, while 
the same thing operated as a stimulant to his opponents, who 
have since redoubled their efforts. It would be a hardship to 
deprive his widow of any portion of that reward which Con- 
gress might see fit to bestow upon the author of this great 
discovery, and more especially to award it to those, who, 
there is every proof, have endeavored to deprive her of her 
just rights. 

We ask but an impartial consideration of the claim of Dr. 
Wells, so far as substantiated by facts ; and that as the 
representative of her husband, Mrs. Wells may receive any 
and every reward which Congress may see fit to adjudge — 
who, in thus doing, would confer a needed favor upon her, and 



16 



honor upon our own country, which they represent, while at 
the same time they would receive the hearty approval of the 
great mass of the medical profession in this country, who 
have been not uninterested spectators of this struggle, and 
who would rejoice to see even a tardy justice done to the 
memory of one to whom they feel themselves so much in« 
debted. 

P. W. ELLSWORTH, M. D. 
L. B. BERESFORD, " 
B. ROGERS, 
GEORGE HUNTER, " 
JOHN S. BUTLER, " 
ARCHIBALD WELCH," 
GEORGE BRINLEY. 



WM. W. ELLSWORTH, 
THOS. H.SEYMOUR, 
ISAAC TOUCEY, 
JAMES DIXON, 
JOSEPH TRUMBULL, 
TH08. S. WILLIAMS, 
EBENEZER FLOWER, 
Hartford, March^ 1852. 



See examina- 
tions of mem- 
bers of this bo- 
dy before the 
U. S. Commis- 
sioDer, as to 
their krtowl- 
tedge in the pre- 
Bjjses. 



Resolution of the General Assembly of Cyonnecticutof May, 184'/* 

W'"hereas, it being understood by this Assembly that Dr. Hor- 
ace Wells^ of Hartford, discovered, in 1844, that nitrous oxyd 
gas, or the vapor of ether, inhaled [by] persons, causes in- 
sensibility to pain, in amputation or other surgical opera- 
tions, which discovery has been most honorably noticed by 
various medical societies in London, and by the Academy 
of Medicine, and by the Parisian Medical Society in France, 
and has since been in use in England, France, and in this 
country ; Therefore, 

Resolved by this Assembly, That the aforesaid discovery, by 
Dr. Wells, of Hartford, Connecticut, of the use of nitrous oxyd 
gas, or vapor of ether, in surgical operations, is of great im- 
portance to the public, and entitles the inventor to the favor- 
able consideration of his fellow-citizens, and to the high sta* 
tion of a public benefactor. 

Passed by the Connecticut Legislature, in 1847. 



At a meeting of the City Council of Hartford, on Monday 
evening, March, 21st, 1852, the following preamble and res* 
©lutions were unanimously adopted ; 



17 

Whereas, The members of this Council have learned that a re- .seeexammi- 
port is to be made by a committe of Congress, awarding bere'ofthh^ 
the honor of the discovery of the use of anaesthetic agents Jfg^c^n,^. 
in surgical operations, to W. T. G. Morton, of Boston, and sjoner, ^jo 
recommending an appropriation of one hundred thousand edge in the pre- 
dollars to the said Morton, for the said discovery ; Therefore "^""^ 
be it 

Resolved, That the design of this appropriation being to 
remunerate the person who has, by this discovery, greatly 
benefitted mankind at large, we consider that the late Horace 
Wells, of this city, is clearly entitled to precedence, as having 
been the true author of this important discovery, and to him, 
and him alone, is due the honor and reward. 

Resolved, That to our personal knowledge, the death of Dr. 
Wells occurred at the moment when he was on the point of 
fully establishing the justice of his claim, not only in this 
country, but also abroad, and while his death left no one to 
defend his cause, his opponents have spared no exertions to 
avail themselves of the opportunity which his death has given 
them, to forward their claims. 

Resolved, That this discovery, one of the most remarkable 
of the age, may justly be considered an honor to this State, 
and is deserving of an especial notice from our next Legis- 
lature. 

Resolved, That being informed that Mrs. Wells, the widow 
of the said Horace Wells, has forwarded a petition to Con- 
gress, together with documentary evidence of her claim, as 
representative of her husband, satisfactory to some of our 
most eminent citizens and surgeons, that a copy of these reso- 
lutions, duly signed and evidenced, be forwarded to the Hon. 
Charles Chapman, member of Congress for this District; also, 
that additional copies be forwarded to each of the Con- 
gressional delegates from this State, now in Washington, and 
that they be requested to use all proper exertions to obtain a 
reversal of the decision of said Committee, and an award in 
favor of Mrs. Wells, as we are fully persuaded that the honor 
of this discovery belongs wholly and unconditionally to the 
late Horace Wells, 



Examinations lefore the U. S. Commissioner at Sari- 
ford^ of the members of the Connecticut Legislature^ 
members of the Council of Hartford^ and Physicians 
and Surgeons^ touching their knowledge of the facts 
of the case assumed in the Resolutions of the Legis- 
latu/re and Counsel^ and the foundation of the samie^ 
and of the Petition of Dr. G, W, Ellsworth^ (&c.y 
hereinbefore set forth. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: 

District op Connecticut, ) 

City of Hartford and State of Connecticut. ) 

Be it remembered, That on this twenty-fourth day of No- 
vember, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred 
and fifty-two, and by adjournment till December 10th, 1852, 
I, Erastus Smith, a Commissioner, duly appointed by the Cir- 
cuit Court of the United States, for the District of Connecti- 
cut, in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts of 
Congress, entitled " An Act for the more convenient taking of 
affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of 
the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, and the Act 
of Congress entitled " An Act, in addition to an Act, entitled 
' An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits and bail 
in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United States,' " 
passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act entitled "An Act to es- 
tablish the Judicial Courts of the United States," passed Sep- 
tember 24th, 1789, did call and cause to be and personally 
appear before me, at my office, at Hartford, in the city of 
Hartford, in the said District of Connecticut, in the State 
aforesaid, C. A. Taft, G. B. Hawley, and others, to testify and 
the truth to say, on the part and behalf of the petitioner, in 
a certain matter now depending and undetermined, in the 
Congress of the United States, at Washington, wherein W. 
T. G. Morton is petitioner or memorialist. And the said wit- 
nesses having been by me first cautioned and sworn to testify 
the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, in the 
matter of controversy aforesaid, I did carefully examine the 
said witnesses, and they did thereupon depose, testify, and say 
as follows, viz : 

Dr. CiNciNNATus A. Taft. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 
Ans. Thirty last March ; am a physician. 



ore. 



19 

Ques. Where do you reside, and how long have you resided 
there ? 

Ans. I reside in Hartford; have resided there since the 
spring of 1846. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells, and when was your first acquaintance with him ? 

Ans. I first became acquainted with him in Boston, about 
January, 1845. I afterwards saw him in Hartford. Had no 
great acquaintance with him. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of the discovery 
by him of any anaesthetic agent in surgical operations, and if 
so, what agent ? 

Ans. I was in Boston, attending medical lectures, in 1844-5. See WeHs's 
Some time that winter Dr. Warren announced to the class Smon^' "f 
that a gentleman from Hartford wished to give nitrous oxydJ^°'®y ^j^^^^'^^^ 
gas, for the purpose of rendering the body insensible to pain, wasatotajfaii- 
He then introduced Dr. Wells to the class. Dr. Wells, that """ 
evening, or soon after, gave the gas to several persons in a 
public hall in Boston. One person had a tooth extracted ; he 
made some noise, apparently from pain, but my impression is 
that afterwards he stated he was not conscious of any pain. 
I took the gas from Wells, at that time, but not for any ope- 
ration, but for the fun of the thing, as did several others. I 
saw no other experiments to test the thing. 

Ques. Had the medical class prepared nitrous oxyd gas for 
the purpose of inhaling, the evening that Dr. Wells was in- 
troduced to the class by Dr. Warren, for sport ? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells make his experiment the same even- 
ing he was introduced to the class ? 

Ans. I cannot say. 

Ques. Have you not sworn on a previous occasion that it 
was the same evening ? 

Ans. Not if I recollect right. 

Ques. Was it not in an adjoining room in the medical college 
where Wells addressed the class? 

Ans. I think not. 

Ques. Who was the person who had the tooth extracted ? 

Ans. I do not now recollect, nor do I now remember whether 
he was a member of the class or not. 

Ques. Would you swear that you heard him say he expe- 
rienced no pain ? 

Ans. No, I would not swear to it ; but it is my impression 
he said so, after the influence of the gas had passed off that 
evening. 

Ques. Will you name any other person who inhaled the 
gas beside yourself? 

Ans. Dr. Lanborn, of Reading, Mass., who I believe is now 
in Boston, is the only one whose name I can now call to 
mind. 



20 

Ques. Did you sign the certificate signed by Dr. Fuller and 
others, in the spring of 1847? 

Ans. I have no recollection of ever signing it. I did not 
know the persons mentioned in the certificate, with the excep- 
tion of J. G. Wells. 

C. A. TAFT, M. D. 



Geo. Brinley. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation! 

Ans. I am seventy-eight years old ; I am in no business^ 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was partially acquainted with him. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical ope* 
rations? 

Ans. I have no personal knowledge. I received my infor» 
mation from Dr. Sumner and others, in 1844, or about that 
time, that Dr. Wells used nitrous oxyd gas to prevent pain* 

Ques. Did you say, in the presence of Dr. Wells, that the 
individual who discovered this idea was stupid that he did not 
pursue it ? 
See cooiey, Ans. I Said it to him. 
S; and'^io™: Ques. What did he say ? 

wX£rton. ^^^' ^ ^^^ "°* know him at the time, and begged his par-* 
don. He said he would forgive me, as he saw I was his 
friend ; that he was stupid, or a jackass, that he had not pur- 
sued it. 

GEORGE BRINLEY. 



See in con- This IS TO CERTIFY, That during the last two or three years, 

S*^?oinirta!j I have been familiar with the successful operations of Dr« 

MamSon**'' -^^^^^^^ Wells, and other dentists of this city, in extracting 

foBowing. teeth, without pain, by the aid of nitrous oxyd gas, and he, 

alone, was regarded as the author of this discovery. 

G. B. HAWLEY, M.D. 
Hartford, March 27, 1847. 



$1 



Dr. G. B. Hawley. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation? 

Ans. Forty ; I am a physician. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was, partially. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaethetic agents in surgical ope- 
rations ? 

Ans. I have no personal knowledge of his discovery. I 
have the knowledge of the use of such agents, but was never 
present when Wells administered them. 

Ques. How long have you resided in Hartford ? 

Ans. Since 1836. 

Ques. In your practice have you made use of anaesthetic 
agents in surgical operations, and if yea, what ? 

Ans. I have; chloroform. seeGoodtte's 

Ques. Was you present at the amputation of a limb of a'^®^""***"* 
young man by the name of Goodale, in East Hartford, by Dr. 
Ellsworth ? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

Ques. What anaesthetic agent was administered to him ? 

Ans. Nitrous oxyd gas. 

Ques. Was the limb amputated apparently without pain? 

Ans. Not entirely, but essentially relieved the pain. 

Ques. For how long a time did he seem to be relieved from 
pain? 

Ans. During the whole operation. 

Ques. How many times was the gas administered during 
the operation ? 

Ans. I can 't say as to the number ; he breathed it as ne- see same com- 
cessity required. *"• 

Ques. Who administered the gas? 

Ans. I do not recollect. 

Ques. At what time was this operation performed ? 

Ans. In the winter of 1847-8 I think. I think we went out 
in a sleigh. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. Did you sign the certificate signed 
by Dr. Fuller, and other physicians of Hartford, relative to 



22! 

Dr. Wells's discovery, and are the facts stated in the same 
true? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. I did, and they are true. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. What was the certificate you 
signed ? 

Ans. I cannot state the wording of the certificate. 

Ques. At this time, if you do not recollect the wording of 
the certificate, how can you state the facts set lorth in it are 
true? 

Ans. I judge of my recollection of my impressions at the 
time I signed the certificate. 

Ques. Have you ever signed more than one certificate ? 

Ans. Not to my recollection. 

G. B. HAWLEY, 



Dr. David Crary. December 9. (Afiirmed.) 

Ques. What is your age, residence, and occupation ? 

Ans. I am forty-six ; reside in Hartford ; am a physician 
and surgeon. 

Ques. How long have you resided in Hartford ? 

Ans. About fourteen years. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of any anaesthetic agent in surgical opera- 
tions, previous to October, 1846? 

Ans. No. 

Ques. Have you, in your practice, ever made use of nitrous 
oxyd gas, as an anaesthetic agent in surgical operations ? 
6C? Ans. No. 

Ques. Have you ever seen nitrous oxyd used in surgical 
operations ? If yea, how many times, and when first, and 
who the patient, and what the operation ? 

Ans. I have seen it but once — January 4th, 1848. I do not 
know the name of the patient, but it was a woman, in South 
Prospect street, and the operation was a removal of a tumor, 
by Dr. Berresford, assisted by Dr. Grant and myself. 



28 

Cross-examined by Welch. 

Ques. Was not Dr. Wells, prior to October 1st, 1846, re- 
puted to be the discoverer of the fact that dental and surgical 
operations might be performed without pain, by the use of 
anaesthetic agents ? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. I can 't say as to date. He was so reputed a long 
time before the operation spoken of above was performed. 

Ques. Was not Dr. Wells's discovery the first of the kind 
of which you ever heard ? 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. direct. Was not Dr. Hackerman, of London, prior to 
1830, reputed to be the discoverer of the fact that by the in- 
halation of gases, pain, in surgical operations, was destroyed ? 

Ans. I may have read it, but I have no recollection that 
such was the fact. 

Ques. In your answer to first cross-interrogatory, what do 
you mean by a long time ? 

Ans. I should say at least one year, and perhaps two years. 

D. CRARY. 



Dr. E. K. Hunt. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is forty- two ; my profession, a physician and 
surgeon. 

Ques. How long have you been a resident of Hartford ? 

Ans. About thirteen years. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any experi- 
ments made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in sur- 
gical operations ? 

Ans. I never saw him make any experiments. ^7X) 

J Question by E. A. Bulkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells. Were 
the matters set forth in the certificate signed by Dr. Fuller 
and other physicians of Hartford, and also by yourself, ac- 
cording to your best knowledge and belief, true ? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. I believe they were true. I saw all the parties named 
in the certificate, and questioned each one. 



24 

Question by H. Cornwall. Have you any experience in 
the use of anaesthetic agents ; and if so, when and what ? 

Ans. I cannot state dates. I have not used any until within 
the last three years. I used chloroform and chloric ether. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with Milo Lee, F. C. Goodrich, 
J. G. Wells, and Wm. H. Burleigh ? 

Ans. I was acquainted with the two last named- — ^not with 
the others. They all came together to my office, at my re- 
quest, to answer any question I might ask respecting their 
personal experience in the use of any article for annihilating 
pain. 

Ques. At what time did they come to your office ? 

Ans. I think in March, 1847. 

E. K. HUNT, 



Dr. John Schru. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am thirty-five, and a physician. 

Ques. Where do you reside ? 

Ans. In Hartford. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any experi- 
ments made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgi- 
cal operations ? 
03^ Ans. I have no personal knowledge. 

Ques. Did you know anything in relation to any such dis- 
covery by any one previous to October 1st, 1846 ? 

Ans. Not to my present recollection. 

Question by E. A. Bulkley. How long have you resided in 
Hartford ? 

Ans. I came in the fall of 1844. 

Ques. Do you practice surgery at all ? 

Ans. To some extent. 

Question by H. Cornwall. Have you ever seen any persons 
on whom Dr. Wells experimented ? 

Ans. Not to my knowledge. 

Question by same. Did Dr. Wells ever come to you to 
talk with you on this subject ; and if so, when ? 

Ans. He came to me in 1846 or 1847 — after his return from 
Europe, and after a controversy had arisen — with a paper he 
wished me to sign relative to his discovery, which 1 think I 
signed. 

JOHN SCHRU, M. D. 



Dr. G. W. Russell. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation? 

Ans. I am a physician and surgeon. My age is thirty- 
seven. 

Ques. Where do you reside ? 

Ans. I have always resided in Hartford. 

Ques. Was you acquainted writh the late Dr. Horace 
Wells ? 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any experi- 
ments made by him of the use of anassthetic agents in surgi- 
cal operations previous to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. I had no persona! knowledge. cp) 

Question by Wales, who appeared for Mrs. Wells. 

Was you not credibly informed, by members of the medical 
profession, that Dr. Wells had made a discovery of anaesthetic 
agents for surgical operations, a year or two before you heard 
of their use in Boston ? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. I should say yes. 

Question by same. What facts were you informed of the 
use of these agents? 

(Objected to on the ground of being hearsay ; and that if 
Dr. Wells performed any experiments, the persons on whom 
they were performed should be called on to testify to them.) 

Ans. I learned from my intercourse with my medical breth- 
ren that Dr. Wells had extracted teeth from persons under 
the influence of nitrous oxyd gas. 

Ques. Had you heard any other name mentioned than Dr. 
Wells as the discoverer, before you heard of the claim of 
Morton and Jackson, of Boston ? 

Ans. 1 had not. 

Question by H. Cornwall. When did you hear of the dis- 
covery of Morton or Jackson ? 

Ans. I cannot say now as to the month or year ; but it was 
some time subsequent to my hearing of the experiments of 
Dr. Wells. 



26 

Ques. by same. Did you ever use nitrous oxyd gas in any 
of your surgical operations? 

Ans. I never have. 

Ques. by same. Have you ever used any anaesthetic agent, 
and what, if any, and when did you first use it? 

Ans. I have used a mixture of ether and chloroform, once or 
twice, about two or three years since. I have used chloro- 
form frequently — soon after it was brought into this country. 
I never used ether. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. Were the matters set forth in 
the certificate, signed by Dr. Fuller, and other physicians of 
Hartford, and also by yourself, according to your best knowl- 
edge and belief, true. (Objected to.) 

Ans. They were. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. At whose suggestion did Lee, Good- 
rich, Wells, and Burleigh, call on you ? 

Ans. I cannot say. 

Ques. What did Burleigh then say to you ? 

Ans. He and the others stated they had teeth extracted, or 
some other operation performed on them, by Dr. Horace 
Wells. 

GURDON W. RUSSELL, M. D. 



Dr. Benjamin Rogers. December 6. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am seventy-three, and a practising physician. 

Ques. How long have resided in Hartford ? 

Ans. Thirteen years. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. Yes, but not intimately. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical operations ? 
Oj^ Ans. No, sir ; I have not. 

Ques. Have you ever made use, in your practice, of any 
anaesthetic agent in surgical operations ; if yea, what agent ? 

Ans. I have never used any. 

Ques. Did you ever personally know of the use of nitrous 
oxyd gas, in any surgical operation, previous to October 1st, 
1846? 
03* Ans. No, sir. 



27 

Ques. Did you ever know of the use of ether, as an anaes- 
thetic agent in surgical operations, before that time ? 
Ans. I did not. 

Ques. How far was your residence from that of Dr. Wells ? 
Ans. I think, not quite half a mile. 

BENJ. ROGERS. 



Dr. George Sumner. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. Fifty-eight, and a physician. 

Ques. How long have you resided in Hartford ? 

Ans. Thirty-two years. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells ? 

Ans. Slightly. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him, of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical op- 
erations ? 

Ans. I have no personal knowledge. ^ 

Ques. Have you ever made use of nitrous oxyd gas as an 
anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I have not. 

Ques. Have you any knowledge of the use or discovery of -CO 
ether, as an ansethetic agent in surgical operations, before 
October 1, 1846? 

Ans. I don't think I have. 4jO 

Ques. Did you know Dr. S. Fuller and Wm. James Barry ? 

Ans. I did. 

Ques. Are they living ? 

Ans. No. 

Ques. Do you know Drs. E. E. Marcy and D. S. Dodge ? 

Ans. I do. 

Ques. Where do they reside ? 

Ans. In New York. 

Cross-examination. 

Ques. Had you ever any conversation with Dr. Wells, on 
the subject of any anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I had. 



28 

Ques. When? 

Ans. Soon after his visit to Boston. I think, in January, 
1845. 

Ques. Did he speak of having discovered the anaesthetic 
properties of nitrous oxyd gas? 

Ans. He did, according to my impression. 

Ques. Did he state to you his object in going to Boston? 

Ans. I don't think he did. 

Ques. Was it generally knov^m and believed, in this com- 
munity, from and after December, 1844, that Dr. Wells had 
discovered an anaesthetic agent ? (Question objected to.) 

Ans. It was a subject of discussion among physicians in 
this vicinity, and, I think, generally believed. 

Ques. Had you, prior to the time referred to in your last 
answer, ever heard of any discovery of any anaesthetic agent, 
by any other than Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I had. 

Ques. To what discoveries do you refer ? 
OT/" Ans. To Beddoes, Davy, and others. 

Ques. Did you know or hear of the use of any anaesthetic 
agent, in surgical operations, prior to the discovery of Dr. 
Wells? 

Ans. I don't think I did. 

Direct examination resumed. 

Ques. Did you ever know a surgical operation performed, 
under the influence of any anaesthetic agent, before the fall of 
1846; if so, what? 
QkT Ans. My impression is I have known alchohol so used. 

Ques. When was the matter of Wells's discovery discussed ? 

Ans. I cannot state the day, or the month, or year. It was 
soon after mesmerism and laughing gas were brought to notice 
in this city. I think about 1844 or 1845. 

Ques, Was not nitrous oxyd, at that time, considered as a 
thing of no practical value in surgical operations ? 

Ans. Before the experiments of Wells, it was so consid- 
ered. I think, after that, it had a reputation it had not before. 

Ques. You say it was generally believed, in this communi- 
ty, after December, 1844, that Wells had discovered an 
anaesthetic agent. Will you name any person that believed 
it? 
(C/* Ans. I got the impression that a good many believed it, 
but can give no names. I think Dr. Marcy and Dr. Ells- 
worth, surgeons, believed it. 
(Xj» Ques. by Welch. Was not this discovery a subject of dis- 
cussion, in your medical meetings, during the years 1845 and 
1846 ? 

Ans. It is my impression that it was. 

Ques. You state that, after Dr. Wells' experiments, nitrous 
oxyd gas had a reputation that it had not before. Do you 
mean by that, that this gas, in consequence of the Doctor's ex- 



29 

periments, came to be considered a valuable anaesthetic 4^ 
agent ? 

Ans. It was more noticed. «C0 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Was nitrous oxyd, at that time to 
which you refer, considered a valuable anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I cannot answer definitely. It had a growing repu-^ 
tation. 

Ques. Do you consider, at this time, that nitrous oxyd is a 
valuable anaesthetic agent in surgical operations ? 

Ans. I do not practice surgery. I do not place the confi- jp^ 
dence in it I do in chloroform. 

GEORGE SUMNER. 



Dr. S. B. Beresford. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation f 

Ans. I am forty-six, and a physician and surgeon. 

Ques. How long have you resided in Hartford ? 

Ans. About eighteen years. 

Ques. Did you know the late Dr. Horace Wells, in 1846 
and 1846? 

Ans. 1 knew him as a practising dentist. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him, of the use of any anaesthetic agent, in surgical opera- 
tions, previous to October Ist, 1846 ? 

Ans. 1 was present at no operation of the kind, and had nojp) 
personal experience. 

Ques. Have you ever in your practice made use of nitrous 
oxyd gas as an anaesthetic agent ; if yea, when first, and who 
was the parient operated upon ? 

Ans. Yes ; 1 operated in this city, January 4, 1848, on Mrs. 4^ 
Charles Gabriel, removing, from the neighborhood of her 
shoulder, a tumor, while under its influence. 

Ques. Have you ever made use of nitrous oxyd, in any sur-.rjO 
gical operation, since ? 

Ans. No, sir. ^ 

Ques, Have you any knowledge of any experiment, or use 
of any anaesihetic agent, by Dr. Wells, except that derived 
from hearsay ? 

Ans. All that I knew was derived from hearsay, previous 
to the date of this operation* 

Cross examination. 



30 

Q,aes. When did you first hear of the discovery, by Dr. 
Wells, of an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. Two or three years previous to the operation. 

Ques. Was not Dr. Wells's discovery a matter of great no- 
toriety and comment, during the years 1845 and 1846? 

Ans. Yes, sir ; I frequently heard the matter alluded to. 

Q,ues. Was not his discovery the subject of frequent dis- 
cussion, in your medical meetings, about that time ? 

Ans. I cannot remember with sufficient distinctness to en- 
able me to answer that question. 

Q,ues. Did you, during the year 1845, hear that any other 
than Dr. Wells claimed to have discovered any anaesthetic 
agent ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

Clues. How large was the tumor of which you have spo- 
ken? 

Ans. From recollection, I should say from five to seven 
ounces. 

dues. How long was the patient under the influence of the 
nitrous oxyd gas ? ^ 

Ans. I should think six or seven minutes under its com- 
plete influence. I speak from recollection. The mass was 
removed in five or six minutes, and she very soon recovered 
her perception, after it was taken out. 

Glues. Was the operation successful and satisfactory? 

Ans. It was. The patient felt no pain during the removal 
of the tumour. 

Clues. Did Dr. Wells administer the gas ? 

Ans. Yes. 

Q,ues. Was not the above operation as successful and sa- 
tisfactory as any you have ever performed with any other 
anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. It was quite as successful as any, so far as destroying 
sensibility was concerned. 

Glues. Do you know that Dr. Wells was obliged to aban- 
don his profession sometimes, on account of ill health ? 

Ans. I think I remember hearing Wells make a statement 
to that effect. 

Glues. Did Dr. Wells ever abandon his claim as the first 
discoverer of an anaesthetic agent? 

Ans. Never, to my knowledge. 

Ques. Was he not generally regarded by the profession as 
such discoverer ? (Objected to.) 

Ans. He was, by the profession in this city. 

Direct resumed. 

Glues. Can you state that any person of the medical pro- 
fession, in this city, regarded him as the original discoverer of 
the use of an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I cannot state any particular individual ; but I know 
that it was the general opinion of the faculty here, that he 
was entitled to that credit. 



31 

Last part of answer objected to. 

Ques. What do you mean by the general opinion of the =C0 
faculty ? 

Ans. The only opinion I heard expressed. 

Ques. Do you mean to say that before October, 1846, you^ 
heard the matter of any discovery of anaesthetic agent, by 
Dr. Wells, talked of ? 

Ans. Two or three j^ears before the operation above spoken j-q 
of, I frequently heard the matter alluded to. I cannot specify 
dates, nor answer more fully. 

Q,ues. You say the operation you have spoken of was quite 
as successful as any you ever performed, so far as destroying 
sensibility was concerned. In what was the operation not 
as successful ? 

Ans. The patient was very faint and depressed, for about <C^ 
half an hour after recovering her perception. 

Ques. Was not the administration of the gas in this case 
attended with asphyxia ? 

Ans. I think not. 

Q,ues. What was the appearance of the face of the patient ? 

Ans. At this distance of time I cannot remember, to speak 
with precision. 

Q,ues. Have you any idea that Dr. Wells ever perfected, 4^ 
and brought into general use, nitrous oxyd gas as an anaes- 
thetic agent in surgical operations ? 

Ans. No, sir ; I do not think he did. j^ 

Q,ues. Is nitrous oxyd, in your judgment, a valuable anaes- 
thetic agent in dental and surgical operations? 

Ans. 1 have never used it, but in the case above alluded to,=p) 
and give a decided preference to chloroform, in surgical op- 
erations. 

L. B. BERESFORD, M. D. 



Dr. Archibald Welsh. November 30. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am fifty-eight ; am a physician and surgeon. 

Ques. Where do you reside, and how long have you resided 
there 1 

Ans. I reside in Hartford, and have done so for about four 
years. 



82 

Ques. Where had you resided for five years previous to 
coming to Hartford 1 

Ans. In Wethersfield, four miles south of Hartford. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical opera- 
tions ? 
(Cf" Ans. I have no personal knowledge of any experiments of 
that kind. 

Ques. In your practice, have you ever made use of any 
anaesthetic agent in surgical operations; if yea, what? 
(C/' Ans. I have. I have used sulphuric ether, and chloroform, 
and a combination of the two. 

Ques. Can you state when you first made use of these 
agents ? 

Ans. I cannot state definitely. About five or six years. 

Ques. Have you ever used nitrous oxyd gas in surgical 
operations ? 

Ans. I never have. 

Ques. Why not ? 
OO" Ans. I used nothing until chloroform and ether were intro- 
duced, and they are more easy of application. 

ARCHIBALD WELSH, M. D. 



Hon. J as. Dixon* 

Ques. What is your age and occupation 1 

Ans. I am thirty-eight. I am an attorney by profession* 

Ques. Where do you reside ? 

Ans. In Hartford. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dx. tlorace 
Wells ? 

Ans. I was, 

Ques, Have you ever \wYnessed any experiments by him 
in the use of any anaesthetic agent in surgical operations? 
{^ Ans. 1 never witnessed any, but was told by Wells he had 
extracted teeth without pain. I think by the use of nitrous 
oxyd gas. 

Ques. Did you ever apply to Wells to administer the gas 
to you for the purpose of having a tooth extracted? 

Ans. I think not. 



33 

Ques. Did you ever have a conversation with Dr. Wells 
in regard to the use of nitrous oxyd, in v^hich he discouraged 
its use by you in having teeth extracted ; if so, state fully the 
conversation ? 

Ans. I had repeated conversations with Riggs and Wells. 
Think both said that for so slight an operation as pulling 
teeth they would not advise its use, but that in severe surgi- 
cal operations, as amputation, it should be used, but in slight 
operations it was not best to run the risk of using the gas. 4^ 
Welles said its use would entirely prevent pain, and he had 
extracted thirteen teeth with safety and without pain. These 
conversations were in May, 1845, and subsequent. Wells 
spoke of it as a recent discovery by him ; said he had an- 
nounced it to some members of the Boston Faculty. I think 
Jackson and Morton were mentioned by name, but am not 
positive. He spoke of an experiment before a class in Boston, 
in which he did not succeed as he had in Hartford, and the 4^ 
witnesses of his experiment discouraged him. 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells tell you that he had met with only 
partial success in the use of .the nitrous oxyd gas, and had 
abandoned its use ? 

Ans. I think he never did. 

Ques. Have you not previously said to any one that Dr. 
Wells told you so ? 

Ans. I never have. 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells ever inform you that he received the 
idea of using nitrous oxyd gas to prevent pain in extracting 
teeth from Dr. Cooley ? 

Ans. No. He said he discovered it himself. 

Ques. by E.- A. Bulkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells. Did Dr. 
Wells claim to you that he had discovered an agent that 
would relieve pain in surgical operations; and what did he 
say of it ? 

Ans. In May, 1845, he claimed that he had discovered an 
agent that would work a revolution in surgical operations, 
entirely relieving them of all pain. 

Ques. Did you have a conversation with Dr. Wells rela- 
tive to a letter to Dr. Morton, dated October 20th, 1846 ; and 
what did he say ? (Objected to.) 

Ans. He said he did not intend by that letter to abandon see the corres- 
his claim of discovery. That he wrote it hastily, considering admtS ^' by 
Morton his friend, without understanding that the claim of JJ^^^'^'f^g^'' ^ 
Morton was substantially identical with his. He claimed" 
Morton treated him ill in getting the information from him 
and then claiming the invention himself. He said Morton 
would never have thought of it if he had not announced the 
discovery. 

Answer objected to, as the witness was in conversation 
during the time of giving the answer with E. A. Bulkley, 



34 

counsel for Mrs. Wells, and that the conversation was with 
Wells was after a controversy had arisen. 

Ques. by same. Was any fact in the above answer, objected 
to, suggested to you by said counsel ? 

Ans. There was not. 

Ques. by same. Did Dr. Wells inform you that he had 
made use of other anaesthetic agents than nitrous oxyd gas ; 
and if so, at what time ? 

Ans. He frequently said he had used ether before Morton's 
pretended discovery. The conversations in regard to ether 
0^ were after Morton's petition to Congress. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Did you suggest to the counsel for 
Mrs. Wells, the above questions that he has put to you here 
in this room? 

Ans. I told him what I knew, and he put his questions. 

Ques. What year was it, while you were a member of 

Congress, that you volunteered to make claim for Dr. Wells, 

in opposition to Dr. Morton's memorial to Congress ? 

See answer to ^ns. Duriug thc 29th Congrcss, having personal knowledge 

ante, and' an- that Dr. Wclls madc the discovery. Under a sense of official 

Swing her'eto.' ctuty, I voluntecred to assert the rights of Dr. Wells, who was 

my constituent. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells 
made any discovery of the use of any anaesthetic agent in 
surgical operations, previous to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. None except what was derived from conversation 
with Dr. Wells and Dr. Riggs. 

Ques. Do you mean to say that Dr. Wells, in 1847, told 
you that he had used ether, in any surgical operation, previous 
to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. I think he said he or Dr. Marcy applied it in a surgi- 
cal operation, performed by Marcy, previous to that date, but 
am not confident as to date. 

Ques. Were these latter conversations with Wells, while 
he was instructing you as to his claims, in opposition to Mor- 
ton's before Congress ? 

Ans. Not wholly, but some part were while he was con- 
sulting me as his representative in Congress. 

Ques. What part was not ? 

Ans. Much of the conversation was in reply to inquiries 
put by me, to satisfy myself on a subject of so much scientific 
interest. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Why did Wells speak to you on 
the subject of the letter to Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. I had seen the letter among Dr. Morton's proofs, and 
asked him what it meant. 

JAMES DIXON. 



85 



Ebenezer Flower. December ^. 

Ques. What is your age and eccupation ? 

Ans. I am 65. I am a coal dealer. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Are you the mayor of the city of Hartford, and how 
long have you been such ? 

Ans. I am, and have been so for a little over a year and a 
half. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by Dr. Wells of the us6 of any ansesthetic agents in surgical 
operations ? 

Ans. I have none. ^ID 

iCross-examined. 

Ques. by Bulkley. Was it not the general sentiment of the 
community, so far as you know, that Dr. Wells was the first 
discoverer of an agent to produce insensibility to pain in sur- 
gical operations? (Objected to.) 

Ans. So far as I recollect, it was the opinion of the people 
here that he was the first discoverer. 

Ques. Have you conversed with Dr. Wells upon that sub- 
ject ; and if so, what did he say 1 

Ans. I have heard Dr. Wells say, repeatedly, that he was 
the first discoverer. 

Ques. Can you now state how early he made that claim? 

Ans. I am not able to give dates, but think it was soon ^ 
after the subject was agitated. 

Direct examination resumed. 

Ques. Did you ever hear of the use of any ansesthetic 
agent in surgical operations, before October, 1846? 

Ans. I am not able to say distinctly whether I have or not,j;j) 

Ques. Will you say that the conversations to which you 
have alluded, with Dr. Wells, were not after October, 1846? 

Ans. It appears to me it was longer ago ; but I have no 
means of fixing the date. 

Ques. If these conversations were not after Dr. Morton had 
perfected his discovery, and the matter had been agitated by 
reason thereof, how did Dr. Wells come to say that he was 
the first discoverer ? 

Ans. That is more than I can say. J^ 

EBENEZER FLOWER. 



BQ 



Hon. Thos. H. Seymour. 

Ques. What is your age, residence, and ofRcial stations ? 

Ans. I am 45, reside in Hartford, and am Governor of the 
State of Connecticut. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells, and 
for how long previous to his death ? 

Ans. I think I knew him about ten years. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical operations ? 
(Xy Ans. I have not. 

Ques. Have you any knowledge on this, except from bear- 
say? 

Ans. I have not. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. Was it not said, in 1844, in No- 
vember, that Dr. Wells had made %uch a discovery ? 

Ans. It was. 

Direct examination resumed. 

Ques. Can you state that you ever heard anything said, 
with regard to the use of an anaesthetic agent, in November, 
1844? 

Ans. I cannot state more than I have. I may be mistaken 
in the year. It was in ]844 or 1845. 

THOS. H. SEYMOUR. 



Hon. Joseph Trumbull. 

Ques. What is your age and place of residence ? 

Ans. I am seventy years old this day. My residence is in 
Hartford. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. Partially so ; not intimately. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical opera- 
tions ? 

Ans. I had no knowledge except by common report. 

Ques. Did you ever hear any such report before October, 
1846? 
(j^ Ans. I cannot specify as to time. I cannot say that I did. 

Ques. Are you acquainted with Dr. W. T. G. Morton ? 

Ans. I have never seen him. 



37 

Cross-examination. 

Ques. Did you hear of Dr. Wells's discovery of an anaes- 
thetic agent before you heard, of a similar discovery by any 
one else ? 

Ans. According to my recollection, vrhat I heard respecting 
Dr. Wells's discovery, was anterior to anything I heard in 
favor of any one else. 

Direct examination. 

Ques. Do you mean to have it understood, by your last 
answer, that no one else had made such discovery before you 
heard the report to which you have alluded 1 

Ans. I mean to say that no one had to my knowledge. 

JOS. TRUMBULL. 



Thos. Roberts. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is 58. I am a stove dealer and tin and sheet neSon'" S 
iron manufacturer. this deposition. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace tiiat wSTad 
Wells ; and if so, how long ? S^f InSf'S 

Ans. I think I became acquainted with him in 1843 or prosecute his 

_ _ . ^ '• experiments, 

1844. 

Ques. Since that time, have you had any business con- 
nexion with him, and when ? 

Ans. I have done his work for two or three years. I think 
in March, 1846, we went into partnerthip in the shower bath 
business. 

Ques. How long did Dr. Wells continue in the shower 
bath business? 

Ans. He and I continued in business about two months, be- 
fore we dissolved. Dr. Wells continued in it alone till 
November, 1846, when I bought him out. 

Ques. What were the circumstances that led to your sepa- 
ration in business ? 

Ans. After we had been in business a short time, he asked 
me how much capital I was going to put in. I told him I did 
not expect to put in any, as if the thing was good for any- 
thing it would support itself by selling rights. He said he 
had called in his money and should put in about 85,000, and 
showed me his bank book. He said he had already agreed 
for 500 tubs. I told him it was a wild operation, and I 
should have nothing to do with it. The next day, or soon 
.after, he called again, and asked how much capital I was 



88 

going to put in. I answered as before. I had no capital fto 
put in, and should not if I had. This difference about the 
capital led to our separation. We had a warm discussion, 
and the matters between us was left to arbitration. 

Ques. Can you state what business Dr. Wells was engaged 
in in the year 1845? 

Ans. 1 cannot definitely. In 1844 or 1845 he got up a coal 
sifter, of which we made a number. 

Ques. Do you know of his getting up a panorama or bird 
exhibition, or exhibition of natural history ; and if so, when ? 

Ans. I only know by hearsay. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells. Was not 
Dr. Wells pursuing his dental business in the time above refer- 
red to ? 

Ans. I never was in his office. My impression was he was 
pursuing his dentist business as usual. 

Ques. by Mr. Cornwall. Do you know that Dr. Wells, in 
1845 or 1846, was at all engaged in dental business? 

Ans. I do not. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. Do you know he had an office ? 

Ans. I do. 

Ques by same. From what you saw is it your belief that 
he was pursuing his dental business ? (Objected to.) 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Do you know Dr. Wells was 
actively engaged in business, in 1845 and 1846? 

Ans. He was actively engaged in the shower bath business 
in 1846. As to the dental business, I cannot say more than I 
have already said. 

THOS. ROBERTS. 



Dr. W. S. Crane. 

Ques. What is your age, residence, and occupation ? 

Ans. I am 51 ; reside in Hartford, and have been a dentist 
for the last 17 years; have resided in Hartford 16 years. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of any anaesthetic agent in dental and sur- 
gical operations ? 

Ans. No. 

Ques. Have you, in your practice as a dentist, ever admin- 
istered nitrous oxyd in dental operations ? 



89 

Ans. I once administered it to Dr. Warner. He brought a Timenotcer- 
bag, which he said, and which I supposed contained nitrons sifiou o^- Ntvr- 
oxyd, from Dr. Wells's office, and under its influence I 
tracted a number of his teeth. I think four. 

Ques. When was this ? 

Ans. I think in March, 1845. 

Ques. In your judgment, is nitrous oxyd gas a valuable and 
efficient ansesthetic agent in dental operations ? 

AnSo I should say no. J^ 

W. S. CRANE. 



Dr. Jas. M. Greenleaf. 

Ques. What is your age, residence, and occupation ? 

Ans. Age 33 ; residence Hartford ; occupation a dentist. 

Ques. How long have you been a dentist in Hartford ? 

Ans. About 16 years. 

Ques. Have you ever made use of nitrous oxyd gas in your sy) 
dental business, to prevent pain in extracting teeth ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

Ques. Have you ever seen it administered ; and if so, by 
whom and where ? 

Ans. I saw it administered once, by Dr. S. A. Cooley, which -C^ 
produced vomiting. This was at my office. 

Ques. Was the experiment entirely unsuccessful ? 

Ans. Yes. ^ 

Cross-examination. 

Ques. Have you a brother, who was a dentist in Hartford, 
who has used it ? 

Ans. I have. 

Direct examination resumed, 

Ques. Do you know he used it more than once ? 

Ans. I do not know how many times he used it. 

Ques. Who instructed him in the use of it ? 

Ans. Dr. S. A. Cooley. 

J. M. GREENLEAF. 



Dr. Hiram Preston. 

Ques. What is your age, residence, and occupation ? 
Ans. Age, 44 ; residence, Hartford ; am a dentist. 
Ques. How long have you practiced dentistry ? 
Ans. Between nine and ten years. 



40 

(^ Ques. In your practice, have you ever made use of nitrous 
oxyd as an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I have not. 

Ques. Have you ever made use of any anaesthetic agent in 
dental operations ; if yea, what ? 
(C? Ans. I have used chloroform, chloroform and sulphuric 
ether combined, in equal proportions, and chloric ether. 

Cross-examined by Welch. 

Q,ues. How long have you practiced dentistry in Hartford ? 

Ans. It will be six years the first of next April. 

Ques. Did you reside in Hartford before that time ? 

Ans. No. 

Ques. When was the first time you ever made use of any 
ansBsthetic agent ? 
(EJ- Ans. I think about four years. 

Ques. Did you ever see nitrous oxyd gas administered, for 
anaesthetic effect, prior to your opening an office in this city ; 
if yea, when and by whom? 

Ans. I never had. 

Q,ues. by H Cornwall. Where had you resided for the four 
years next prior to your coming to Hartford ? 

Ans. The two next preceding, within a month or two, were 
spent in Granby, in this county, and the two previous years in 
Georgia, and in travelling. 

HIRAM PRESTON. 



Dr. Cyrrel Bullock. 

Q^ues. What is your age, residence, and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is 39 ; reside in Hartford ; my occupation a 
dentist. 

Ques. How long have you been in the practice of dentistry 
in Hartford ? 

Ans. About ten years. 

Ques. Did you know the late Horace Wells ? 

Ans. I did. 
q3^ Q^ues. Have you ever, in your practice, made use of nitrous 
oxyd to destroy pain ? 

Ans. I never have. 

Q,ues. Have you ever made use of any anaesthetic agent in 
dental operations ; if yea, what ? 
(Xy- Ans. I have used chloroform, but no other. 

Ques. Have you ever seen nitrous oxyd administered for 
the purpose of extracting teeth ; if yea, about what time, by 
whom, and where, and was it successful ? 



41 

Ans. I have, about the year 1846 or- 1847, at the house of 
Mr. P. Holt, in this city, by S. A. Cooley. It was not sue- 4^ 
cessful. It was administered that I might extract some teeth, 
but it did not produce insensibility, and I did not extract the 
teeth. 

Ques. What was the effect produced on the patient ? 

Ans. She appeared wild and restless. '^ 

CYRREL BULLOCK. 



United States of America, ) 
District of Connecticut. ) 

I, Erastus Smith, a commissioner duly appointed by the Cir- 
cuit Court of the United States, for the District of Connecticut 
in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts of Con- 
gress, entitled "An Act for the more convenient taking of 
affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of 
the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, and the Act 
of Congress entitled " An Act, in addition to an Act, entitled 
'An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits and bail 
in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United States,* " 
passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act, entitled "An Act to 
establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," passed 
September, 24th, 1789, do hereby certify, that the reason for 
taking the foregoing deposition is, and the fact is, the witness 
are material and necessary in the cause in the caption of the 
said deposition named. 

I further certify, that a notification of the time and place 
of taking the said depositions, signed by me, was made out 
and served on the Elizabeth W. Wells and Charles Wells, to 
be present at the taking of the depositions, and to put interro- 
gatories, if he or they might think fit. 

I further certify, that on the 24th day of November, in the 
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 
and divers subsequent days, I was attended by counsel for 
petitioner and for Mrs. Wells, and by the witnesses, who were 
of sound mind and lawful age, and the witnesses by me first 
carefully examined and cautioned, and sworn to testify the 
truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and the 
depositions were by me reduced to writing, in the presence of 
the witnesses, and from their statement, and after carefully 
reading the same to the witness, they severally subscribed the 



42 

same, in my presence. I have retained the said deposition in 
my possession, for the purpose of sealing the same with my 
ov^n hand and forwarding to Congress, for which the same 
were taken. 

And I do further certify, that I am not of counsel nor 
attorney for either of the parties in the said deposition and 
caption named, nor in any way interested in the event of the 
cause named in the said caption. 

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, 

this tenth day of December, in the year of our 

r -| Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 

'- * *-■ and of the Independence of the United States 

the seventy-seventh. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
United States Commissioner, duly appointed 
by the Circuit Court of the United States, for the 
District of Connecticut in the Second Circuit. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: 

District of Connecticut, ) 

City of Hartford, and State of Connecticut, ) 

Be it remembered, That on the 22d, 23d, 24th and 26th days 
of November, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight 
hundred and fifty-two, I, Erastus Smith, a Commissioner, 
duly appointed by the Circuit Court of the United States, for 
the District of Connecticut, in the Second Circuit, under and 
by virtue of the Acts of Congress, entitled " An Act for the 
more convenient taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, 
depending in the Courts of the United States," passed Feb- 
ruary 20th, 1812, and the Act of Congress, entitled "An Act, 
in addition to an Act, entitled ' An Act for the more conven- 
ient taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in 
the Courts of the United States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, 
and the Act, entitled " An Act to establish the Judicial Courts 
of the United States," passed September 24th, 1789, did call 
and cause to be and personally appear before me, at my 
office at Hartford, in the City of Hartford, in the said District 
of Connecticut, in the State aforesaid. Miles A. Tuttle, John 
W. Bull, and others, to testify and the truth to say, on the 
part and behalf of the petitioner, in a certain matter now de- 
pending and undetermined, in the Congress of the United 
States, at Washington, wherein W. T. G. Morton is petitioner 
or memorialist. And the said witnesses having been by me 



43 

first cautioned and sworn to testify the truth, t!ie whole truth, 
and nothing but the truth, in the matter of controversy afore- 
said, I did carefully examine the said witnesses, and they did 
thereupon depose, testify, and say as follows, viz : 



Miles A. Tuttle. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is forty-nine, and I am a merchant. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with Dr. H. Wells, late of 
TTfirtford deceased . 

Ans. I'had a partial acquaintance with him ; I was not in- 
timately acquainted with him. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
of the late Dr. Wells of the use of any angesthetic agent m 
surgical operations ? 

Ans. I had no personal knowledge. r. ^ 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, March 21, 1852 ? 

Ans. I was. n i n -i 

Ques. Was you present at the meeting ot the Council, 

March 21, 1852? 

Ans. I was, if that was the evening on which resolutions 
were passed relating to Dr. Wells's discovery. 

Ques. Did you act on said resolutions ? 

Ans. I did. 

Ques. By E. A. Balkley, counsel for Elizabeth W. Weils. 
On what information did you act ? 

Ans. I acted on information obtained from others, and my 
own belief. 

Ques. by same. Had you any personal knowledge that 
Dr. Wells, just before his death, was engaged in perfecting 
his discovery ? 

Ans. I was told so ; I had no personal knowledge. I knew 
he went to France, and was informed he went for that 
purpose. 

Ques. By H. Cornwall, From whom did you get any infor- 
mation for your action in the Common Council ? 

Ans. From Alderman Grant and Alderman Hudson, and I pJjf.Jr n^ 
think others of the Council, but do not now recollect names, j^^u know 

Ques. by same. Do you not know that Dr. Wells's business = ' 
in France was to purchase pictures ? 

Ans. I do not, ^ ^ 

M. A. TUTTLE. 



44 



John W. Bull. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is fifty-two, and I am a merchant. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. I had a slight acquaintance with him— merely on bus- 
iness. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
of the late Dr. Wells of the use of any anaesthetic agent in 
surgical operations ? 
Cj" Ans. I had none. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, March 21, 1852? 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. Was you present at the meeting of the Council, 
March 21, 1852? 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. Were there resolutions passed at that meeting, rela- 
ive to any discovery of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. There was. 

Ques. Did you act on said resolutions T 

Ans. I did. 

Ques. If you had no personal knowledge of any discovery 
by Dr. Wells, upon what did you base your action ? 
JZS!" ^^' ^^^' ^^'^"^ information given by Alderman Grant and Al- 
derman Hudson, and what J had seen published in the papers 
relative to his experiments with Dr. Riggs and others, I think. 

Ques. Did you ever see a statement published in any paper, 
of any experiment performed by Dr. Wells upon any person, 
previous to October, 1846 ? 

Ans. I do not recollect the dates, and have no means of 
judging. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. Had you any personal knowledge 
that Dr. Wells, just before his death, was engaged in perfect- 
ing his discovery ? 

Ans. I had not, in particular ; I knew he had gone to France, 
and I supposed for that object. 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells tell you for what purpose he had 
been to France ? 

Ans. No, sir ; I had no conversation about it. 



i5 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. When did Dr. Wells visit France? 
Ans. I cannot now say. 

Ques. by same. In what was he engaged after his return ? 
Ans. I cannot now say. 

J. W. BULL. 



Charles Benton. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am fifty-one years of age, and am a soap and candle 
manufacturer. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I had no acquaintance. I knew him. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of ansesthetic agents in surgical operations ? 

Ans. I have not. =p) 

Ques. Were you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, March 21, 1852, and was you present at the 
meeting of the Council that day ? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Did you act on the resolutions before the Council, re- 
lating to Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I did. 

Ques. On what information did you act ? 

Ans. From the information of members of the Council. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery? 

Ans. I had not. «p) 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. Had you any information from 
others ? 

Ans. I had. 

CHARLES BENTON. 



Samuel Rockwell. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 
Ans. I am fifty-four years old, and a merchant. 
Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 
Ans. I knew him by sight ; had no acquaintance with him. 



46 

Ques. Have you any personal kno\v!edge of any discovery 
by him of the use of ansesthetic agents in surgical operations ? 
Z3=' iVns. I had not. 

Ques. Were you a member of the Common Council of the 
Cit}- of Hartford, March 21, 1S52, and was you present at the 
meeting of the Council that day ? 

Ans. I vi'as there at the time resolutions Vv'ere passed re- 
specting the discovery of Dr. Wells, and acted upon them, 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery ? 

Ans. I had not. 

Ques. On what information did you base your action in the 
Common Council ? 
^doS^^ ^^' ■^^^' ^^ostly from what I heard said that evening, by Alder- 
man Grant and Alderman Hudson, and, I think, several others, 
members of the Council — I do not recollect who thev were. 

SAMUEL ROCKWELL. 



P. F. R0BBIN-5 = 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am forty-five, and am a cabinet manufactiirer. 

Ques. Vras you acquainted with Dr. H. Wells, late of 
Hartford, deceased ? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of anesthetic agents in surgical operations ? 

Ans. He said to me, in my ofiice, that he had got hold of 
something by which he could take my teeth outj without my 
Vv'incing ; he did not tell me vv'hat it was. 

Ques. When did he tell you this ? 

Ans. I think it was before he went to Boston, and tried ex- 
periments there. 

Ques. At any conversation with Dr. Wells, did he tell 
you from, whom he got this idea ? 

Ans. ISo, sir. 

Ques. Did he state to you anything farther ? 

Ans. Xo, sir. 

Ques. Did you have any conversation with him in refer- 
ence to this m.atter, after his return from Boston ? 

Ans. Xo, sir. 



47 

Ques. Who was present at this conversation ? 

Ans. I do not recollect any one ? 

Ques. Was the conversation to which you have alluded^ 
before or after Wells got up a shower bath ? 

Ans. I think, before ; I think he came in to get a spring for 
his shower bath, at this time, but may be mistaken. 

Ques. Were you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, March 21, 1852, and was you present at the 
meeting of the Council that day ? 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. Did you act on the resolutions before the Council, 
relating to Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I did. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery? 

Ans. No more than from current reports ; I had no personal 'CO 
knowledge. 

Ques. Do you know what Dr, Wells was engaged in the 
years 1845, 1846, and 1847? 

Ans. A part of the time in dentistry business; as to the rest, 
I cannot say. He was out of health a part of the time. 

Ques. What part of the time was he engaged in dental 
business ? 

Ans. I could not say definitely. 

Ques. Was it a large or small portion of the time ? 

Ans. I should think a small portion. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley. — Had you heard of Wells's dis- 
covery before you heard of Dr. Morton ? 

Ans. He made the statement I have mentioned before I 
heard of Dr. Morton. 

P. F. KOBBINS. 



Noah Wheaton. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is forty-five; my occnpation a carpenter and 
house builder. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells, of 
Hartford ? 

Ans. 1 was. 



48 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical operations 1 
dj* Ans. I had no personal knowledge, but I often noticed it in 
the journals ; I heard the citizens speak of it. 

Ques. Did you ever see a description of any experiment 
published in any paper, as having been done by Dr. Wells, 
previous to October, 1846? 
03- Ans. I could not say as to dates; my impression is j that I 
have previous (to) that time. 

Glues. In what paper did you see it, and on whom was the 
experiment performed? 
(^ Ans. I could not say. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, March 21, 18.52, and was you present at the 
meeting that day? 

Ans. I was present when the resolutions, relating to Dr. 
Wells, passed, and I acted upon them. 

Q,ues. Upon what testimony did you act ? 

Ans. On the statements of Aldermen Grant and Hudson, 
and Councilman P. D. Stillman, and what I had seen in the 
papers previously. 

Glues. Had you ever heard anything, or seen anything, pub- 
lished previous to 1st of October, 1846? 

Ans. Could not say as to dates. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery ? 

Ans. Previous to his desaih, and just after I noticed state- 
ments in the papers, just after his death, I recollect particu- 
larly of seeing statements in the Journal of Commerce of his 
discovery being before Medical Societies, particularly in a 
society in France. I had no personal conversation with 
Wells nor did I see any experiments. 

N. WHEATON. 



BSNONI A. SHEt»ttERt)* 

Ques. What is your age and occupation t 

Ans. Fifty-five-— merchant. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr, Wells? 

Ans. I was. 



49 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaBsthetic agents in surgical op- 
erations, previous to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. I have not. ^ 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford, March 21st, 1852? and was you present at 
the meeting that day ? and did you act on the resolutions re- 
lating to the discovery of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I w^as a member, and present, and acted on said reso- 
lutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you act ? 

Ans. From information received from dilFerent individuals, '^ 
from the statements in the newspapers, from the statements 
of Aldermen Grant and Hudson, and I think others of the 
Council. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery ? 

Ans, I had not. 

BENONI A. SHEPHERD, 



Edmund B. Kellogg. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is forty- three. I am a manufacturer of piano 
fortes ? 

Ques. Were you acquainted v^rith the late Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical op- 
erations ? 

Ans. I have not. JP^ 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford, March 21st, 1852? and was j^ou present at 
their meeting that day ? and did j^ou act on the resolutions 
relating to the discovery of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was a member, was present at the meeting, and 
acted on the resolutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you act ? 

Ans. I acted on the information given by Aldermen Grant cp} 
and Hudson, and I think of Alderman Robinson, and some 
others of the Council. 
4 



50 

Ques. Had you aii}^ personal knowledge that Dr. Wellj 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery? 
(Tj" Ans. I had not. 

EDMUND B. KELLOGG. 



m 



L A. Bragan. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation 1 

Ans. Age, thirty-one — profession, a merchant. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical op- 
erations ? 
CEj" Ans. I had not. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford, March 21st, 1852? and was you present at 
the meeting that day? 

Ans. I was a member of the Common Council, but was not 
present at any time when any resolutions were discussed or 
passed relative to the discovery of Dr. Wells. 

ISAAC A. BRAGAN. 



Thomas Steele. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation 1 
Ans. My age is forty. I am a watch-maker. 
Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells f 
OO' Ans. I was, intimately. 



51 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any experi- 
ments made by him of nitrous oxyd gas, or any other agent 
for the purpose of rendering the human body insensible to 
pain in surgical operations, previous to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. I have never seen any operations or experiments. I^ 
had conversations with Dr. Wells, about his extracting teeth 
without pain, previous to his going to Boston to make experi- 
ments. 

Ques. Can you state the conversation ? 

Ans. I cannot state the precise conversation, nor any more 
than I have above stated. 

Ques. Did he state to you, in this or any other conversation, 
from whom he got the idea of pulling teeth without pain ? 

Ans. No, sir ; but spoke of it as his own discovery ; at least, 
I got the impression it was his own discovery, from what was 
said ; but I cannot give the conversation. 

Ques. Do you know, or did you ever hear, of any experi- 
ment performed by Dr. Wells, after his return from Boston, 
and previous to the 1st of October, 1846 f 

Ans. I cannot recollect dates ; I cannot state positively ; Jp) 
my impression is that I did. 

Ques. Upon whom? 

Ans. I cannot state. rj) 

Qaes. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford, March 21st, 1852 ? and was you present at 
the meeting that day? and did you act on the resolutions re- 
lating to the discovery of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was a member, and present, and acted on said reso- 
lutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you then act ? 

Ans. Principally on my own previous information; but'^ 
some light was thrown on the subject by the remarks of Alder- 
men Grant and Hudson. 

Ques. Had you any previous information, except that you. 
have spoken of? and if so, what? 

Ans. The discovery of Wells was a matter cf conversation 
in community. It was a matter I heard talked of a good deal. 

Ques. Can you tell w^hether this conversation you speak of 
in community was in the fall of 1846? or if not, in what year 
was it ? 

Ans. I cannot ; I have no means of ascertaining dates. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery ? 

Ans. No, sir. There was conversation after his death to ^ 
that effect. 

Ques. by Dr. Ellsworth, for Mrs. Wells. What did Wells ^ 
say of his success in Boston, after his return, and the opinions 
expressed by others ? 

Ans. Wells said some regarded it with favor, but others 
scouted the idea. I think he mentioned one by name of Jack- 



52 

son, who ridiculed the subject ; think he was connected with 
some institution as chemist or scientific man. I think he men- 
tioned others who ridiculed his discovery or experiments. 

Ques. by same. Did you see any person who had been op- 
erated upon by Wells, or any dentist in Hartford, after Wells's 
visit to Boston, and the date of Morton's claim, in 1846? 

Ans. I cannot say. 

Ques. Was it not a fact notorious that teeth were extracted 
without pain, for some time after Dr. Wells returned from 
Boston ? 

Ans. My impression is it was. 

Ques. by same. Did Dr. Wells say that he delivered a 
lecture before a medical class in Boston ? 

Ans. He spoke of delivering a lecture, or making experi- 
ments, or something of that character, before some medical 
men. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. In this conversation, after his return 
from Boston, what did Dr. Wells say, if anything, in relation 
to the failure of the experiment he had made there ? 

Ans. I do not recollect he said anything, more than what I 
have before stated. 
CCj" Ques. Do you know personally of a single tooth being 
pulled in Hartford, without pain, af :er Wells returned from 
Boston ? 

Ans. I do not. 

THOMAS STEELE. 



Newton Case, 

Ques. What is your ag^ and occupation f 

Ans. I am forty-five, and a publisher. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I was well acquainted with him. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical op- 
erations, previous to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. I have no personal knowledge, though I heard the 
subject talked of, previous to that date. I heard Dr. Crane 
speak of the article used at that time, discovered by Dr. 
Wells, to prevent pain in extracting teethe I think it was in 



53 

1845. The conversation was at Crane's office, where my 
daughter had a tooth extracted which pained her much. 
Crane said if he was to pull another, he would give her the 
gas. 

Ques. Why do you think this conversation with Crane was j^ 
in 1845? 

Ans. My daughter is now nineteen, and I think when the J^ 
tooth was extracted she could not have been over ten or eleven 
years old. 

Ques. Is this your only reason for thinking it was 1845? if 
not, what other reason can you give ? 

Ans. I do not know I can give any more definite reason. I=CO 
am not positive as to the year, but may have some memoran- 
dum by which I can fix the date. 

Ques. Do you know from whom Dr. Wells received his 
idea of pulling teeth without pain ? 

Ans. I do not know. I have heard Dr. Wells speak of his 
experiments. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford, March 21st, 1852? and was you present at 
the meeting that day? and did you act on the resolutions 
relating to the discovery of Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I was a member, and present, and acted on said reso- 
lutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you then act ? 

Ans. On statements made to the Council, by Aldermen j-q 
Grant and Fludson, and what I had previously heard about it. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery ? 

Ans. I had none, except Dr. Wells told me, after his return r^ 
from Europe, that he had presented his claim to some society 
or scientific body in Paris. 

Ques. Are you sure he told you that he had presented his 
claims to any society in Paris ? 

Ans. I am positive. 

Ques. What was the business of Dr. Wells, in 1845, 1846, 
and 1847? 

Ans. I cannot say definitely. He sold out his dental busi- j-q 
ness ; was engaged for some time in getting up a panorama ; 
I cannot say how long. He afterwards resumed his dental 
business ; 1 don't recollect at what time. I know he was in 
the bath business ; I think for one season. 

Ques. by Dr. Ellsworth, for Mrs. Wells. Did you know or jp^) 
hear of any other discoverer than Dr. Wells, of the gas for 
preventing pain ? 

Ans. I did not, until Dr. Morton's claim was presented to 
Congress, to my present recollection. 

NEWTON CASE. 



54 



Philo S. Newton. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am forty-one, and a gun-maker. 

Ques. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells T 

Ans. Slightly. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of ansesthetic agents in surgical 
operations, previous to October 1st, 1846? 
:ry Ans. I had personally seen no experiments, or had any 
knowledge of the matter, except such as was derived from 
report, and I cannot fix the date of the report. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford, March 21st, 1852 ? and was you present as 
the meeting that day ? and did you act on the resolutions 
relating to the discovery of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was a member, and presont, and acted on said reso- 
lutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you then act ? 

Ans. I acted on the common reports of the day, and the 
statement of some members of the Council, then present. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting an}^ discovery ? 
^ Ans. I had not. 

P. S. NEWTON. 



P. D. Stillman. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is forty-three. My occupation is a manufac- 
turer and dealer in hats, caps and furs. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 



55 

Ans. I was, intimately. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaesthetic agents in surgical op- 
erations ? 

Ans. I had. 

Q,ues. What knowledge had you that he made such dis- 
covery ? 

Ans. About the year 1844, I was frequently in Dr. Wells's 411) 
room ; he was making experiments; some in mesmerism; also 
in gas. One day, on invitation, I think I went to his office, -CD 
and he administered gas to J. Gaylord Wells, and extracted 
a tooth apparently without pain. Immediately after the tooth 
was out, J. G. Wells jumped up — clapped his hands — seemed 
excited. Dr. Wells asked J. G. Wells if it hurt him. J. 
G. said he did not feel it ; should not know it had been taken 
out. Dr. Wells also seemed excited — expressed himself as 
successful, and seemed exceedingly pleased. I was very often 
in Dr. Wells's room. I have a slight recollection of two other 
cases in his office in which gas was administered, and I think 
I saw a young man have a tooth out under its influence. I 
do not remember his name. I suppose it was without pairi« 
I have no dates, and cannot give the times. 

Q,aes. What did Dr. Wells administer to J. Gaylord Wells ? 

Ans. I supposed it was some kind of gas ; do not know that 
I heard it named. I supposed it was what they called laugh- 
ing gas. 

Ques. How long did J. G. Wells continue in the excited 
state you have spoken of, and what did he do besides clap his 
hands ? 

Ans. The excitement seemed to pass oiT immediately. IXD 
do not recollect he did anything else, I think he clapped his 
hands two or three times, and burst into laughter. 

Q.ues. Can you state positively whether you ever saw any 
other experiment by Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I know I saw some other, but can give no name. 

aues. When? 

Ans. About the same time, and subsequent to J. G. Wells. 

Ques. What month in 1844 was the experiment you speak 
of, on J. Gaylord Wells, performed ? 

Ans. I can't say. 

Glues. Was it in December ? 

Ans. My impression is it was the fall, but whether Sep- 
tember or December, can't say. 

Q-ues. Personally, do j'-ou know of an experiment of Dr. 
Wells, after 20th of January, 1845 ? 

Ans. I have now no recollection of any. cp) 

Ques. Can you state, of your own personal knowledge, that 
Dr. Wells originated this idea of pulling teeth, without pain, 
by taking gas into the lungs ? 



56 

Ans. I know Dr. Wells claimed he had made the discoveryy 
openly and publicly, and I never heard it called in question at 
that time. 

Q,aes. When and where did he claim the discovery, and 
what did he say ? 

Ans. At and about the time the experiments were made at 
his office ; in his office, and while walking with him in the 
streets and in the fields. 

Q,ues. Did you ever, in any other manner, hear him claim 
this discovery ? 

Ans. I do not know that I did. 

Ques. Can you state in vi^hat business Dr. Wells was en- 
gaged in 1845, 1846, and 1847 ? 
OC/' Ans. On account of ill health, he left the dentist business ; 
was engaged in various undertakings ; I cannot particularly 
specify them now. 

Q,ues. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
city of Hartford in 1852 ? and was you present, and did j^ou 
act on the resolutions relating to the discovery of Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I was a member, and present, and acted on those reso- 
lutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you then act ? 

Ans. I acted on my own knowledge, which I have now 
detailed. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery? 

Ans. I had not. 
(TT Ques. by Dr. P. W. Ellsworth, for Mrs. Elizabeth Wells. 
Qj^- Do you know Dr. Wells visited Boston, relative to this dis- 
covery ? 
CCr Ans. I supposed he did. I know he went to Boston; I think 
soon after drawing J. G. Wells's tooth. 

Ques. by same. What was popular opinion in Hartford as 
to Dr. Wells being the discoverer of the gas for preventing 
pain. (Question objected to.) 

Ans. I never heard it questioned till yesterday. 

Ques. by same. Do you know that others used gas in dental 
operations besides Dr. Wells, about this time. 

Ans. I do not, of my personal knowledge. 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells go back to his dental business, after 
leaving it ? 

Ans. He did, a year or two, or two or three, after these ex- 
periments; I cannot give the time. 

Ques. by same. Did you know Dr. Wells, just before his 
death, went to New York, to lay his claims before the medical 
faculty ? 

Ans. I did not. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. During the time Dr. Wells was out 
of his dental business, was he actively engaged in other busi- 
ness? 

Ans. I suppose he was — I know he was. 



57 

Q,ues. by E. A.Bulkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells. After Dr. 
Wells returned from France, did he inform you he had laid 
his claims before the medical faculty, for his discovery of pre- 
venting pain in surgical operations ? 

Ans. He did. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Do you know for what Dr. Wells 
went to Paris ? 

Ans. I only know from what he did there, and v^^hat he told 
me afterv/ards. 

Q.ues. by same. Do you know what he did there; and if so, 
w^hat ? 

Ans. He purchased paintings, and also stated to me he 
presented his claims for this discovery to some society ; what 
society I cannot say. 

Q,aes. by E- A. Bulkley. Did he state to you that he ex- 
pected to receive from Paris a pension or reward ? (Objected 
to.) 

Ans. I so understood him. 

PETER D. STILLMAN, 



C. D. Wyman. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am thirty-two, and a telegraph operator. 

Qaes. How long have you resided in Hartford? 

Ans. I came in in the spring of 1847. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with Dr. Wells ? 

Ans, I was, slightly. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery^ 
in anaesthetic agents in surgical operations? 

Ans. I had not — I never witnessed any experiment. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of Hart- 
ford ? and did you act on the resolutions relating to Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I was a member, and acted on the resolutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you then a,ct ? 

Ans. On what passed through our office by telegraph at the 
time of his death, and what was told me at, and after the time 
of his death, by Dr. Riggs and Charles T. Bull. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any discovery? 

Ans. Nothing but what I was told by others. 

CD. WYMAN. 



58 



Perry Smith. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 

Ans. I am forty-five ; a-m a merchant. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I had no personal acquaintance. I knew him by 
sight. 
(C? Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of anaeesthetic agents in surgical 
operations ? 

Ans. None. 

Ques. Was j^ou a member of the Common Council of 
Hartford in 1852, and did yoa act on the resolutions relating 
to said Wells ? 

Ans. I was a member, and acted on said resolutions. 

Ques. On what testimony did you then act? 

Ans. Oq the published statements of Dr. Riggs and others, 
published in a pamphlet ; on statements in the newspapers, 
and public opinion generally, and from statements made by 
members of the Council. 

Ques. Previous to October 1, 1846, did you ever see any 
published statement respecting the use of any anesthetic 
agent, by Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I can't cay that I did ; I may have seen it ; I have no 
recollection that I did. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any dis- 
covery ? 

Ans. No. 

PERRY SMITH. 



Jas. Bolter. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation ? 
Ans. I am thirty-seven ; am a merchant. 



59 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. Yes. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery -CD 
made by him of the use of ana^esthetic agents in surgical 
operations? 

Ans. I had not. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any dis- 
covery ? 

Ans. I had no knowledge except from report and belief. 

Ques. On what did you found your belief? 

Ans. From the statements of his widow and others. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, and did you act on the resolutions relating 
to Dr. Wells? 

Ans. I was a member, and acted on the resolutions. 

Ques. by E. A. Bulkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells. On what 
did you base your action in the Common Council relating to 
Dr. Wells's discovery? 

Ans. From report and belief, and statements made to me, 
before I head of Morton or Jackson. 

Ques. by same. Did you, in the Common Council, act as 
on a conceded fact, so far as public sentiment in Hartford 
was concerned, that Dr. Wells was the discoverer? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. I did. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Can you state what the public 
sentiment in Hartford was on the subject of any discovery of 
Dr. Wells, relating to the use of anaesthetic agents, previous 
to October 1, 1846? 

Ans. I should think public sentiment was that he was the 
discoverer, previous to that date ; I am confident of it. 

Ques. Who did yoa ever hear say previous to that time 
that Dr. Wells had made such discovery? 

Ans. Dr. J. M. Riggs, for one, I think ; Chas. P. Wells, for^ 
another, I think. I do not now recollect any other names. 

JAS. BOLTER. 



D. F. Robinson. 

Ques. What is your age and occupation. 

Ans. My age is fifty-one ; I am President of the Hartford 
Bank. 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was. 



60 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any experi- 
ments made by him with nitrous oxyd gas for the purpose of 
rendering the human body insensible to pain in surgical ope- 
rations ? 
(Xj' Ans. I had no personal knowledge ; I saw no experiments. 

Ques. Had you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells, 
just before his death, was engaged in perfecting any dis- 
covery ? 

Ans. I had no personal know^ledge ; I think before he went 
to France I spoke to him of his discovery, but cannot state 
positively. • 

Ques. Will you state whether or not all the imformation 
you have on the subject of any discovery by Dr. Wells, of the 
use of anesthetic agents, was obtained by hearsay ? 

Ans. It was obtained from general report among our citi- 
zens. 

Ques. Do you mean to say that you have heard the citi- 
zens of Hartford, generally, speak on the subject? 

Ans. I cannot say w^ho I heard speak of it, or how many ; 
I frequently heard Dr. Wells had made application of certain 
gas to render the human body insensible to pain. 

Ques. Will you name any individual you heard say so? 

Ans. It is so long ago I do not recollect. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of Hart- 
ford, and did you act on the resolutions relating to Dr. Wells's 
discovery ; and if so, did you act on the reports you have 
spoken of? 

Ans. I was a member, and think I was present when the 
resolutions were passed. I acted on my knowledge obtained 
in 1844 or 1845, or about that time, from the statements I 
have before spoken of. 

Ques. What knowledge had you of any discovery of Dr. 
Wells, in 1844? 

Ans. I cannot speak certainly as to dates. Shortly after 
the exhibition of laughing gas, I heard Dr. Wells had made 
a discovery of administering gas to render his patients insen- 
sible to pain ; this was a year or two before I saw it an- 
nounced in the Boston papers as having been discovered 
there. 

Ques. Do you know from whom Mr. Wells got this idea ; 
and how many experiments he ever performed ? 

Ans. I do not know ; nor how many experiments he per- 
formed. 

Ques. Can you state in v%^hat business Dr. Wells was en- 
gaged in 1845, 1846, and 1847? 

Ans. I was not particularly intimate with him ; supposed 
he had an office and pursued the dental business, and pursued 
this discovery, and was perfecting this discovery until his 
death. 

Ques. Do you not know that, in 1845, he was engaged in 
getting up and exhibiting a panorama? 



61 

Ans. I do not. 

Ques. Do you not know that in 1845, or 1846, he was ex- 
tensively engaged in manufacturing and selling a shower- 
bath? 

Ans. I do not. 

Ques. Do you not know that in the fall or winter of 1846 
he went to Paris, and returned the next spring; and that, 
during 1847, and up to the time of his death, he was engaged 
in selling pictures, at auction or otherwise, which he had 
brought from Paris ? 

Ans. I understood he went to France; with respect to the 
rest of the question, I have no knowledge. 

Ques. by E. A. Balkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells- Have 
you been in the habit of reading the Boston papers since 
1844? 

Ans. I have, since 1836. 

Ques. by same. — Prior to any knowledge you had of any 
claim of discovery by Drs. Morton and Jackson, was there 
not a conceded public sentiment in Hartford that Dr. Wells 
was the discoverer of the principles of rendering the body 
insensible to pain in surgical operations ? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. There was. 

Ques. by H. Cornwall. Who in Hartford conceded it ? 

Ans. I cannot give names. 

Ques. Can you give any one name ? 

Ans. I cannot ; but I think that was the general sentiments 

Ques. How can you come to the conclusion as to the gene- 
ral sentiment of the people of Hartford, if you cannot name 
a single individual you have heard speak on the subject? 

Ans. Because I remember strong impressions, when I do 
not remember names. 

Ques. Do you mean to say that you have received impres- 
sions, generally, from the people of liartford, on this subject ? 

Ans. I can't cay I have conversed with the people generally. 

Ques. Can you testify that any other individual, besides 
yourself, in Hartford, entertains the sentiment that Dr. V/ells 
was the discoverer of any anaesthetic agent? 

Ans. 1 have beard members express that opinion, and never 
heard a contrary one expressed, 

DAVID F. ROBINSON. 



Tliis is the rie- 
position of Al- 

Bargullai Hudson. November 26. ''^'"™^" ""^^■ 



son, on whose 



Ques. What is your age and occupation ? statement so 

Aus. My age is sixty ; I am a merchant, counciuoted? 



62 

Ques. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells, of Hartford? 

Ans. I was well acquainted with him. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any discovery 
by him of any anaesthetic agent in surgical operations ? 
CC? Ans. I never saw any experiments. 

Ques. Do you personally knov/ that just before his death 
he was engaged in perfecting any discovery ? 

Ans. I do not. 

Ques. Was you a member of the Common Council of the 
City of Hartford, in 1852, and did you act on the resolutions 
relating to the discoveries of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I was a member and acted on said resolutions. 

Ques. On what testimony v/as your action in the Common 
Council based ? 

Ans. From statements in the newspapers ; from hearing 
that Dr. Wells had made the discovery, and from never hearing 
any other person claimed the discovery, until after or about 
the time of Dr. Wells's death. 

Cross examined by E. A. Bulkley, counsel for Mrs. Wells. 

Ques. Was it not generally known and reputed in this city 
that Dr. Wells was the discoverer of an agent to prevent 
pain in surgical operations ? 

(Objected to.) 

Ans. I think it was. 

B. HUDSON. 



United States of America, 

District of Connecticut. 

I, Erastus Smith, a Commissioner duly appointed by the 
Circuit Court of the United States, for the District of Con- 
necticut in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the 
Acts of Congress, entitled "An Act for the more convenient 
taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the 
Courts of the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, and 
the Act of Congress, entitled " An Act, in addition to an Act, 
entitled ' An Act for the m_ore convenient taking of affidavits 
and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United 
States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act, entitled "An 



63 

Act to establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," 
passed September 24th, 1789, do hereby certify, that the 
reason for taking the foregoing deposition is, and the fact is, 
the witnesses are material and necessary in the cause in the 
caption of the said deposition named, and they reside more 
than one hundred miles from Washington. 

I further certify. That a notification of the time and place 
of taking the said depositions, signed by me, was made out 
and served on Elizabeth M. Wells, and Charles Wells, to be 
present at the taking of the deposition, and to put interroga- 
tories, if they might think fit. 

I further certify. That on the 22d, 23d, 24tb, and 26th days 
of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight 
hundred and fifty- two, I was attended by counsel for peti- 
tioner, and by counsel for Mrs. Wells, and by witnesses, who 
were of sound mind and lawful age, and the witnesses by 
me first carefully examined and cautioned, and sworn to tes- 
tify the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and 
the depositions were by me reduced to writing, in the pre- 
sence of the witnesses, and from their statements, and after 
carefully reading the same to the witnesses, they subscribed 
the same in my presence. I have" retained the 'said deposi- 
tion in my possession, for the purpose of sealing the same 
with my own hand, and forwarding to Congress, for which 
the same were taken. 

And I do further certify. That I am not of counsel nor at- 
torney for either of the parties in the said deposition and cap- 
tion named, nor in any way interested in the event of the 
cause named in the said caption. 

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, 

this 10th day of December, in the year of our 

r -J Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 

^ * '^ and of the Independence of the United States, 

the seventy-seventh. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
United States Com., duly appointed 
by the Circuit Court of the U. S.,for the 
District of Connecticut in the Second Circuit, 



Deposition of Dr, Ellsworth, whose name appears as cross-ex- 
amining witness for Mrs. Wells, and acting as her agent. 

Hartford, March, 25, 1847. 
As attempts have been made to deprive Mr. Horace Wells, 
dentist, of the honor of discovering the efleets produced by cer- 
tain gases in allaying pain, I feel it my duty to state the facts 
in the case. Dr. Jackson does not claim an earlier discovery 



64 

than the latter part of 1846, and even then only suggested to 
Mr. Morton that ether might answer the purpose, and says 
,val wuh a*dif- that the first trials of Morton were successful, "proving ex- 
S ha?pro-actly as I had predicted." The first trial of Morton, accord- 
ven to be safejng to his owH (Mortou's) Statement, was on the 80th Septem- 
%eehfsdepo-ber, 1846. Now, I hereby declare, that to my full knowledge, 
Jnswer^to^t iiitrous oxyd gas was administered two years earlier than this, 
terrogatory 28 yi2 : lu 1844. by Mr. Wclls, and that many teeth were ex- 

JSiever saw but ,.,''. i • • n ii -n ir txt ii 

one by "Wells tracted, without pam, uudcr its mnuence; and that Mr. vVeils 

see tSonras went to Boston at that time, as 1 was then informed, for the 

failure &^2bJn- P^^P°S6 ^^ introducing the gas to the attention of surgeons in 

donment. that city. Morcover, in an article published June 18th, 1845, 

in the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 1 referred to it 

as a thing well known and established— the article being 

A casual ai- headed, " On the Modus Operandi of Medicine," written to 

iomutent^wkhshow that mauy, if not all, local diseases, are cured by spe- 

'Ahat is now qI^q stimulants. Now, when it is known that Mr. Morton 

ciaiined tor , i • t • p • i -i\t xh:t n i • i i 

Wells. was mstructed in his proiession by Mr. Wells, and introduced 

Not so. .^^^ business by him, we can easily trace the manner in which 
Mr. M. mi^ht have derived his information. It is to be borne 
in mind, also, that Jackson and Morton have, through the 
public prints, each denied the other his claim — a thing, easily 
settled, one would think, if it in justice belonged to either. 
Contrast this In my own mind, there is not a shadow of doubt that the 
rhat\veiii hJd whole merit of the discoveJy of this thing rests with Wells, 
Tised ether m ^^^^j ^^-^j^ ^ixm alonc, although others may have experimented 
with ether before him. The idea and practical application 
are his, and let the public concede that to him, which his 
generosity, unrestricted by patents, demands, and which has 
been, as far as possible, wrested from him. The claimants in 
Boston I do not know, and should be unwilling, in any man- 
ner, to injure their feelings, but I must say that they are la- 
boring under an hallucination at least ; though I cannot but 
hope they may be able to establish some claim to originality, 
a task somewhat difficult, as the case appears to stand. These 
statements are given, not from any personal considerations, 
but simply as an act of justice ; and I hope that the profes- 
sion, after due deliberation, will give a righteous award. 

P. W. ELLSWORTH, M. D. 



Deposition No. 2, of same. 
State of Connecticut, 



Hartford County. ^ 

I was perfectly aware of the discovery, by Horace Wells, of 

the anaesthetic property of nitrous oxyd gas, as early as 1844. 

This implies The dlscovcry of this property, possessed by the gas, must 

^hat ifil^d m" i'^^evitably, in my opinion, have led to the trial of ether, as 

led weiis^to t^y both havo bceu used for many years, to produce the same 

claimed!' """^ physical phenomena in the human body. It undoubtedly 



65 

would be the very first thing suggested to one witnessing the 
anaesthetic effects of nitrous oxyd. 

I am perfectly aware of Mr. Wells's visit to Boston, for the 
purpose, as stated at that time, of announcing his discovery, 
and giving it a fuller trial at the hospital in that city, and 
also his dissatisfaction with the result of his visit, both as to 
the success of his experiment before Dr. Warren and his 
class, and the reception with which his idea met. 

I believe nitrous oxyd gas an efficient anaesthetic agent, not Seeiasteoie. 
as easily used, it is true, as some other substances recently ex- 
perimented with, yet entitled to a high place among these. I 
was fully aware of its complete success, in many minor opera- Seehis^epo- 
tions,in 1844, and repeated often since that time. The charge commiio'Ll!^ 
that it is inefficient cannot apply, as I have, under its inliu- 
ence, removed a thigh with as much success as with ether. This refeis to 

Having a full information respecting the circumstances at- J^J^t^'^n^ S' 
tending the birth of this discovery, and also having carefully ^^J^jj^^^^f^jj: 
perused the statements of Jackson and Morton, I have seenferedpaie, &c. 
no reason to change my opinion, or in the slightest manner 
doubt, that to Wells alone belongs the whole honor of first 
using any substance by inhalation for the mitigation of pain. 

P. W. ELLSWORTH. 

Hartford, November 21, 1849. 

Subscribed and sworn to before me, 

JAMES C. WALKLEY, Justice of the Peace. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

District of Connecticut, 
City of Hartford and State of Connecticut. 

Be it remembered, That on this thirtieth day of November, 
in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fiftj'- 
two, and by adjournments to December 10th, 1852, I, Erastus 
Smith, a Commissioner, duly appointed by the Circuit Court 
of the United States, for the District of Connecticut, in the 
Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts of Congress, 
entitled " An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits 
and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United 
5 



66 

States," passed Februarj- 20th, 1812, and the Act of Congress 
entitled " An Act, in addition to an Act, entitled ' An Act for 
the more convenient taking of affidavits and bail in civil 
causes, depending in the Courts of the United States,' " passed 
March 1st, 1817, and the Act entitled "An Act to establish 
the Judicial Courts of the United States," passed September 
24th, 1789, did call and cause to be and personally appear 
before me, at my office at Hartford, in the city of Hartford, 
in the said District of Connecticut, in the State aforesaid, Dr. 
Pinckney W. Ellsworth, to testify and the truth to say, on the 
part and behalf of the petitioner, in a certain matter now 
depending and undetermined, in the Congress of the United 
States, at Washington, wherein Mr. T. G. ]Morton is petitioner 
or memorialist. And the said witness being about the age of 
thirty-eight years, and having been by me first cautioned and 
sworn to testify the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but 
the truth, in the matter of controversy aforesaid, I did care- 
fully examine the said Ellsworth, and he did thereupon de- 
pose, testify, and say as follows, viz : 



Deposition No. 3, of Dr. Ellsworth^ 

Dr. Pinckney W. Ellsworth. 

1. Ques. What is j'our age and occupation? 

Ans. I am thirty-eight this December ; I am a physician 
and surgeon. 

2. Ques. Where do you reside ? 

Ans. In Hartford, where I have resided since 1839. 

3. Ques. Did you know the late Dr. Horace Wells ? 

Ans. I did, intimately ; lived in the same house — he occu- 
pying the south, and I the north part. 

4. Ques. Are you acquainted with Dr. S. A. Cooley ? 
Ans. I know him very well. 

5. Ques. How^ long have you known him? 

x\ns. For many years ; more particularly for the last five 
or six years. 

6. Ques. Were you acquainted with Dr. Cooley while he 
\vas in the drug business ? 

Ans. I was. 

7. Ques. How^ long were Dr. Cooley and his father engaged 
in the drug business? 

Ans. I cannot say. They were in State street, and moved 
into Bridge street ; w^hether partners or not could not say; 
supposed the father the principal person ; w^hether the son 
was a clerk or partner don't know. 

8. Ques. Was S. A. Cooley engaged in that business for a 
great number of years? 

Ans. How long I cannot say. 



6T 

9. Ques. Do you know G. Q. Colton? 
Ans. I do not. 

10. Ques. Have you knowledge that a man by that name de- 
livered lectures in Hartford, in December, 1844, and adminis- 
tered laughing gas ? 

Ans. From my personal knowledge, I do not ; but some 
person delivered lectures here at that time, and I think that 
was the man's name. 

11. Ques. Do you recollect of persons inhaling the gas at 
that time, and the circumstance that some individual injured 
himself severely under its influence? 

Ans. I have heard such was the case; not present; not a 
severe injury; a slight contusion of shin. 

12. Ques. Who informed you ol this? 
Ans. I think it was Dr. Wells. 

13. Ques. What did he tell you about it? 

Ans. He said somebody either had met with a slight con- 
tusion or bruise, or he was told somebody had been bruised, 
and was told that care must be taken when the gas was in- 
haled, lest he should injure himself, for he would not know 
anything about it until he recovered from the effects of the 
gas. 

14. Ques. When was this conversation ? 
Ans. About the close of the year 1844. 

15. Ques. Did he state to you where this occurred when the 
person was injured, and who was present? 

Ans. I think it was at a meeting where Colton gave th© 
gas, and near the close of 1844; I do not now recellect the 
place, nor do I remember the names of the persons present 
with Wells. 

16. Ques. Did Wells state to you that Dr. Cooley was pre- 
sent? 

Ans. I do not remember his mentioning it. 

17. Ques. Have you knowledge that Dr. Cooley was the 
person that Dr. Wells alluded to as having injured himself 
under the influence of the gas? 

Ans. I have not. 

18. Ques. Did Wells tell you this with his own mouth? 
Ans. Yes, I think so ; ] would not like to swear to it. 

19. Ques. What persons informed you that they were pre- 
sent at the time the individual injured his shins under the influ- 
ence of the gas? 

Ans. I can 't say. David Clark and S. A. Cooley told me 
they were present when Wells took the gas, which was the 
occasion you probably refer to. 

20. Ques. Why do you think I refer to that time ? 

Ans. Because I suppose you know that Dr. Wells always SeeCooiey. 
claimed that he took his idea from knowing that a person 
might be bruised without knowing it ; that he derived his 
knowledge of this fact either from seeing some one so bruised, 



or hearing that such was the case, at a pubHc lecture in this 
city, 

21. Ques. Did t)r. Wells tell you that he received this idea 
from the person that was injured under the influence of the 
gas, or from the fact that the person was injured ? 

See cooiey, ^ns. Wells did not tell me that he received the idea from 
the person who was injured; the precise words he used I 
cannot say ; but the substance was that the knowledge of 
such injury was the means of proving to his mind the feasi- 
bility of using the gas in surgery, and so expressed himself 
that evening. 

22. Ques. What evening? 

Ans. The evening he knew of the injury. 

23. Q,ues. Do you not know that Dr. Cooiey was the person 
whose shins were injured under the influence of the gas? 

Ans I have no personal knowledge, but Mr. Cooiey so in- 
formed me. 

24. Glues. When was this conversation with Dr. Wells? 
Was it in 1844? 

Ans. About the close of 1844. 

25. Ques. When did you first use, if ever, any anaesthetic 
agent in any surgical operation in your own practice ? 

Ans. I think it was in 1845. 
^This^^was after 26. Qucs. Will you fix the date precisely? 

covery in 1846. AuS. I Cannot. 

flui^anrsdon*! 27. Ques. On w^hom was the operation performed, and 
f^Lo^rK^hatwasit? 

anestions. Ans. Mrs. Webb, the present wife of Professor Silliman, sr. 
I extracted a tooth. 

28. Q,ues. Was you ever present at any operation when any 
ansesthetic agent was used by Dr. Wells? If yea, state the 
first time only. 

Ans. I cannot say certainly that I ever saw one by Wells. 
OCj"I went up and saw one by Wells or Riggs, whose offices ad- 
joined. It was, I think, immediately before Wells went to 
Boston about this discovery. 

29. Clues. Who was the person operated upon ? 

Ans. I cannot say; it was a young man, and a stranger to 
me. 

30. Q-'ies. Do you now know him ? 
Ans. No. 

31. Ques. Do you know where he resided? 

Ans. My impression is he was a citizen of Hartford at that 
time. 

32. Qaes. Do you know J. G. Wells? 
Ans, Yes. 

33. Q,aes. Was not he the person ? 

Ans. I cannot say; think very likely he was. 

34. Ques. What anaesthetic agent was used ? 
Ans. Nitrous oxyd gas. 



69 

35. Q.ues. From what was it administered? 

Ans. From a bag. iow??vS: 

S6. Ques. How many teeth were extracted ? 

Ans. I think but one. 

37. Glues. Describe the appearance of thciperson during the 
operation. 

Ans. He did not appear to suffer pain ; was quiet. 

38. Q,aes. Did he say he felt no pain ? 

Ans. I do not recollect his remarks ; I think he so expressed 
himself. 

39. Q,ues. Can you say you recollect a word he said after 
the operation? 

Ans. The language he used has escaped my mind. 

40. Glues. Did you have any direct conversation with the 
person operated upon ? 

Ans. I cannot say. 

41. Q,ues. When, was the next operation j^ou saw by Dr. 
Wells? 

Ans I think I never saw any other by him. J^ 

42. Ques. In your own practice have you ever made use 
of any ansesthetic agent in surgical operations? If yea, 
what ? 

Ans. I have ; I have used chloroform, and nitrous oxyd gas, 
and ether — more commonly ether and chloroform combined. 

43. Glues. What operations have you ever performed with 
the use of nitrous oxyd, and when? and give the names of 
the patients, and their residence at the time the operation 
was performed. 

Ans. Only one — that I have mentioned — the wife of Pro- -CO 
fessor Silliman, then Mrs. Webb, who was on a visit at Daniel 
Wadsworth, in Hartford, and an amputation of a thigh, Jan- 
uary 1st, 1848, on a boy by the name of Goodale, in East 
Hartford, in the presence of Dr. Hall, of East, Hartford, Reed, 
a dentist. Dr. Horace Wells, and several others. Dr. Wells 
administered the nitrous oxyd, at my request. 

44. Ques. Who administered the gas to Mrs. Webb ? 
Ans. S. A. Cooley, at my request. 

45. Ques. How far was the operation on Goodale success- 
ful ? See Goodale's 

Ans. It was eminently so; it could hardly be surpassed. S p!^?."'^^ 

46. dues. Was the Webb case successful ? 
Ans. Entirely so. 

47. Glues. Have you any personal knowledge that any other 
surgeon made use of nitrous oxyd in surgical operations, pre- 
vious to October 1st, 1846? 

Ans. None that I remember. Jpd 

48. Why have you not continued to use the nitrous oxyd in 
your surgical operations? 

Ans. It is not as easily prepared. 



70 

49. Ques. Do you mean to say that the operation performed 
by you on the boy Goodale was entirely unattended with 
pain? 

Ans. It had every evidence of being painless. 

50. Ques. What evidence was there in this case to induce 
you to think it was without pain? 

See Goodale, Ans. Bcforc being uttdcr the influcnce of gas the lad suf- 
^' " fered terribly — could not bear to have the limb touched ; after 

inhalation there was no apparent consciousness ; he was per- 
fectly quiet ; was taken up, and his position changed, with 
considerable movement of the leg and knee ; the thigh was 
cut off without a murmur ; the flaps drawn up so as to see 
that they fitted well ; the large nerve of the ham was found 
to project an inch ; it not having retracted with the flap, it 
was the size of a goose quill ; this was cut ofl*, so as to pre- 
vent its being bruised when crossing the end of the bone; 
this, under ordinary circumstances, would be quite as painful 
as any of the great incisions of the flesh ; he manifested no 
appearance of sensibility. 

51. Ques. Have you now described the whole operation? 
Ans. All that is usuall}^ called the operation, except tying 

the arteries. 

52. Ques. How many times during the operation did Good- 
ale inhale the gas ? 

Ans. I cannot say ; I was attending to the operation, and 
Wells to the gas. 

53. Ques. At any time during the operation did you request 
Dr. Wells to give more of the gas, and he refused ? If yea, 
what reason did he give ? 

See Goodale, Ans. I havc uo recollectiou of any such request; but it is 
not improbable 1 requested more snoulcl be given on the re- 
section of the nerve; if so, Wells gave it; he did not refuse. 

54. Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of any expe- 
riment made by Dr. Wells, with the use of any anaesthetic 
agent, upon any person, for extracting teeth, between January 
20th, 1845, and the 1st of October, 1846? 

0^ Ans. None, unless the experiment already alluded to as 
witnessed by me, the exact date of which I do not recollect. 
I mean this to apply to the anaesthetic agent only, and not to 
the apparatus of inhalation. 
o:j" 55. Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that Dr. 
Wells made use of any apparatus for inhaling any anaesthetic 
agent, between January 20th, 1845, and October 1st, 1846? 
Ans. No. 
Oj" 56. Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that any per- 
sfalement^'^^ifSO^ made usc of cthcr in any surgical operation, for the pur- 
that operation p^gg of preventinsT pain, previous to October 1st, 1846? 

was performed ^.-ly or'i ' 

in Hartford, is AUS. N O. 

Ihir^'wItneS 57. Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that Dr. 
kl.TwSn''^ ^^^^^^ went to Boston, in January, 1845, or about that time, 
for any purpose ? 



11 

Ans. My information was derived from him. 

58. Q,ues. Do j^ou know in what business Dr. Wells was 
engaged during the spring and summer of 1845? 

Ans. I think he was out of business part of this time, on 
account of ill health ; cannot now say as to the rest. 

59. Q,ues. Do you not know that during this time Dr. Wells 
was engaged in getting up and exhibiting a panorama or 
natural history exhibition ? 

Ans. No. 

60. Gtues. Do you know that he did this at any time ? 
Ans. I do not, from personal knowledge. 

61. Q,aes. Do you know in what business he was engaged 
in 1846, previous to December? 

Ans. I think, part of the time getting up a bath, and part 
of the time in dentistr3^ 

62. Qaes. Do you know when he went to Paris ? 
Ans. I think, in the winter of 1846-7. 

63. Q,ues. Do you know for what purpose he went ? 
Ans. I do, in part, at least. 

64. Q-ues. Do you know that he went there for the purpose 
of gettiag up pictures to bring to this country for sale ? 

Ans. That was one object. 

65. Glues. When did he return from Paris? 

Ans. In a short time ; I think two or three months. 

66. Ques. In what was he engaged after his return ? 
Ans. I am unable to state with certainty. 

67. Q,ues. Can you, of your own knowledge, state anything 
he did? 

Ans. Yes. 

68. Ques. Was he engaged during this time in selling pic- 
tures at auction ? 

Ans. Cannot say. 

69. Q.aes. What is your impression about it ? 

Ans. That he made sale of a few of his pictures, by him- 
self or agent, but that many of his pictures remained unsold 
at the time of his death. 

70. Ques. Do you know who his agent was, if he had any ? 
Ans. No. 

71. Ques. How many affidavits have you made on this 
subject? 

Ans. Only one, I think ; it was published. 

72. Q,ues. At whose request ? 
Ans. At Dr. Wells's. 

73. Ques. Have you made a statement, not sworn to, pub- 
lished in a pamphlet in 1852, with your affidavit? 

Ans. I made such a statement, which is published in said 
pamphlet. 

74. Ques. At what date did you make your affidavit ? 
Ans. I cannot now state. 

75. Before whom did you swear to it ? 
Ans. I cannot say from memory. 



72 

76. Ques. Is the affidavit — a printed copy of whicli is now 
shown to you — the affidavit you sw^ore to? 

Ans. I believe it is. 

77. Ques. What is the date of it ? 

Ans. The published date is November 21st, 1849 ; v^^hether 
it agrees with the manuscript I cannot say. 

78. Q,ues. Are you not sure that that affidavit was made 
after the 20th of January, 1848? 

Ans. The affidavit was given after. Since stating that the 
affidavit was at the request of Wells, (having neither seen 
that, nor examined the dates of the statement and affidavit 
before,) I find they w^ere given at an interval, but supposed 
from seeing no date at the bottom of the statement in the 
pamphlet, that the former was a mere general prelude to the 
latter ; the statement was given at the request of Wells, and 
the affidavit, probably, at the request of Mr. Wales, the 
brother of Mrs. Wells. 

79. Ques. Can you say that the affidavit was made at the 
request of any person ? 

Ans. I think it was. 

80. Q,ues. Are you acquainted with the Hon. Truman 
Smith? 

Ans. I am. 

81. Ques. Has he been in this city during any portion of the 
time the depositions were being taken in this matter? If yea, 
for how long ? 

Ans. Yes ; I do not know how Ions: ; it was a hurried visit. 
wS's sS: ®2' Ques. Is he counsel for Mrs. Wells? 
ment that Hob. Aus. Hc cxprcsslv dlsclaimcd it, which is all I know on the 

Tiaman Smith t,- *. r j 

is hei eouasel. SUDjeCt. 

83. Ques. What was the occasion of his disclaiming it ? 
Ans. He called on me for knowledge of the facts, saying 

he was under instructions from the legislature of this State, 
or was acting in behalf of this State, or of the United States ; 
the precise language I can 't recollect. 

84. Ques. Is this what you mean by his disclaiming to be 
her counsel ? 

Ans. No. 

85. Ques. What was it ? 

OCj" Ans. In the course of that conversation he expressly re- 
marked that he was not her counsel. 

86. Ques. How many interviews did you have with him 
on this subject ? 

Ans. I cannot say; but a few. 

87. Ques. Is your memory good ? 
Ans. I think so. 

88. Ques. Have you yet determined the time of extracting 
the tooth for Mrs. Webb ? 

(C? Ans. I have not, with certainty; about triffing events, hap- 
pening four or five years since, my memory may be treache- 
rous. 



Y3 

89. Ques. Do you consider it a trifling event in extracting 
a tooth without pain to the patient? 

Ans. The fact was important that a tooth could be so ex- 
tracted, but not so important that I should remember the ex- 
act time, when so many other teeth had been extracted pre- 
viously, under the influence of the same agent. 

90. Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that a tooth 
was ever extracted, before this, under the influence of nitrous 
oxyd, without pain to the patient? 

Ans. Yes. 

91. Ques. How many? 

Witness asks counsel, "do you mean how many I have 
seen, or how many I have knowledge of?" as it will make a 
difl'erence in the answer. 

Counsel says, " I ask for " personal knowledge," and nothing 
else. 

Ans. I have already stated I had seen but one ; in speaking^ 
of my knowledge, I meant what I had heard from Wells and 
others. 
Cross-examination. 

92. Ques. by H. K. W. Welch, counsel for Mrs. Wells. Do 
you mean that Dr. Wells never entertained the idea that the 
gas might be used for anaesthesia, prior to that evening on 
which it was given in the presence of Colton, Cooley, Clark, 
&c.? 

Ans. No. 

93. Ques. Was you acquainted with J. G. Wells as early 
as 1844? 

Ans. No ; I think I was not. 

94. Ques. You say that when you saw the first patient 
operated on in Wells's orRiggs's office, you do not remember 
the words he used to express himself. What was the fact as 
to his suffering pain? 

Ans. He said he felt none, though the mode of expression I 
have forgotten. 

95. Ques. Are there no other reasons why you do not now 
use the gas, besides its not being so easily prepared. 

Ans. Yes ; it is troublesome to carry to a great distance. 

96. Ques. Do not persons under the influence of ether and 
chloroform appear to suffer pain when they afterwards say 
they did not ? 

Ans. Usually there are more or less expressions of pain — 
cries and movements, unless the patient is completely over- 
whelmed ; these expressions may exist in a great degree and 
yet the patient ordinarily declares himself as having suffered 
no pain. 

97. Ques. Do you mean that the person who has given 
such indications of pain, subsequently declares that he ex- 
perienced no pain ? 

Ans. Yes, where any anaesthetic agent has been well given. 



98. Ques. Have yon often given cbloroform and ether? 

Ans. Yes. 
p.ss! ^^''^^^ 99. How does the Goodale case compare with those under 
the influence of ether? 

Ans. Much superior, with one exception, to any case where 
pure ether has been used by me, so far as I can now remem- 
ber. 

100. Q.ues. Do you consider the dressing of a wound as a 
part the of operation ? 

Ans. No. 

101. Q^aes. Do you continue the gas or vapor during the 
dressing of the wound ? 

Ans. No. 

102. Q,ues. What is the usual practice? 

Ans. All anaesthetic agents are stopped as soon as possible. 
As the dressing is not usually very painful, there is generally 
an interval of some minutes — often twenty — between the in- 
cisions, and bringing the flaps together, to be sure of no after 
bleeding. 

103. Glues. Do persons, after surgical operations with ether 
and chloroform, complain at all during the dressing of the 
wounds? 

Ans. Generally as much asif ihey had not taken it, if there 
is a delay often or fifteen minutes. 

104. Ques. Why do you not continue chloroform or gas 
during the dressing? 

Ans. Because there is some risk in long continuing any 
such agent, and the dressing is not usually painful enough to 
warrant it. 
See Goodale, jQS. Qucs. You Say that in the Goodale case Wells did not 

contra. . '' t • i i tt 

reiuse to give more gasw^nen the nerve was re-divided. How 
do you know this? 

Ans. I know he gave all I wished should be given, and I 
know that I wished enouoh should be given to keep him easy, 
and I know the patient said he was easy. 

106. Ques. You say you have no personal knowledge 
of any operation by Wells, between January 20, 1845, and 
October 1, 1846. Have you any proof that Wells was think- 
ing on the subject, and trying to perfect the discovery ? (Ob- 
jected to.) 

Ans. Yes, according to the best of my belief. 

107. Ques. Did Wells make any improvements, to your 
knowledge, after the first use of the gas, in its mode of admin- 

seep. .istrationt 
fommuStion Aus. There was ample proof to my mind that he did. (An- 
i".S"su^Sswer objected to.) 

Journal, Dec. 108. Qucs. Do vou kuow that fpom January 20, 1845, to 
Wells ceased ail October 1 , 1846, experiments with ansestnetic agents were 
EAi1?pe! being made by Dr. Wells, or others, in this city? 
Tsment at Bos- ^^g^ J havc uo Other pcrsoual knowledge than that pre- 

lon, Jan. 20, . i i i • i ^ . f, ^ 

1844. viously Stated by me, but had evidence satisfactory to my 



15 

own mind that such was the case. (Last part of the answer 
objected to.) 

109. Qaes. Did joa call at the office of Dr. Wells, wilh a 
view to ascertain if experiments with the gas were continued 
by him daring the time mentioned above? 

Ans. Yes. 

110. Ques. Did j^ou ascertain that Dr. Wells, or others 
under his direction, continued the use of the gas during this 
period ? 

Ans. I was told it was u^^ed, but cannot state whether un- 
der his direclion or not. (Objected to.) 

111. Ques. Did Dr. Wells ever consult you with reference 
to the comparative safety of nitrous oxyd gas and sulphuric 
ether as an anassthetic agent? 

Ans. Yes. 

112. Ques. Did he thus consult you prior to Dr. Morton's 
claims of being the discoverer of an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I am confident he thus spoke of it just before or just 
after he returned from Boston, in Januar}^, 1845. 

113. Ques. What opinion did you express on the subject? 
Ans. That he had better be content with the gas, as it had 

proved efficient, and I believed it safer. 

114. Ques. Did Dr. Wells show you improved apparatus 
for inhaling gas between Januarv 20, 1845, and October 1, 
184G? 

Ans. He showed me instruments and improvements, but I 
cannot speak certainly as to the dates. 

114. Ques. Did not Dr. Wells often, prior to October 1, 
1846, speak to and consult you respecting the use of anaes- 
thetic agents by himself? 

Ans. He did. 

116. Qaes. Did Dr. Wells, before leaving this country for !?^^e^Breiv«ter, 
Europe, prepare himself in any manner to make his claim 

public in Paris? 

Ans. He did, as I believe. 

117. Ques. Did he take any steps towards establishing his 
claim in Paris, as the original discoverer of an anaisthetic 
agent, before he left this country? 

Ans. I am quite confident he did. 

118. Ques. Do you know that Dr. Wells, prior to his leav- 
ing for Europe, had heard that Dr. Jackson had presented 
his claim before any of the learned societies in Paris? 

Ans. I do not know ; my impression is he had so heard ; 
but it might have been derived from some letter written by 
him, after he got there, to me or to his wife. 

119. Ques. Was the purchase of pictures Dr. Wells's only 
object in going to Europe ? 

Ans. No, as I have always understood and believed. 

120. Ques. Was it a part of his object to establish his 
claims as the first discoverer of an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. Yes. 



Y6 

121. Ques. Did Dr. Wells do anj'tliing, on his return, 
towards establishing his claim ? 

Ans. He did. 

122. Ques. Did he not write and publish more or less, in 
defence of his discovery, up to the time of his death ? 

Ans. He did. 
to^Srtin''^"ou 1-3. Ques. Did he not attack Morton, at once, on hearing 
?S%J^£; of his claim? 
is4o,;;p.9. ^^ Ans. He did. 

of 2-2 pp.,^wHt^ 124. Ques. Have you published anvthing referring to this 
7 iVK^ discovery of Dr. Wells, prior to October 1, 1846? 

cured 'r^'^' Tf ^"^' ^ have. 

ic stimniifoniy 125. Ques. What, and when ? 

Hnefin leL7- Ans. In an article in the Boston Medical and Surgical 

eDcetothissnb- joj^jj^j^r^] published Juuc IS, 184.5. The discovery is referred 

ject, and issim- ' I ' i i i i • 

ply introduced to in thcse words : "The nitrous oxyd gas has been used in 
insen^siStV to quite a number of cases by our dentists, during extraction of 
['j;"^f°°^^"; teeth, and has been found, by its excitement, fully to destroy 

tion. It does pain." 

notevenshadow * , *^ r\ t\- i ii'i n it 

forth the areat 126. QuBS. DiQ you, bv this lauguage, rcier to tuc uiscovcry 
Si£;'ax;:jof Dr. W^ells, and to that only ? 

has no relation Anc V*ic 

whatever to the ^^"^-168. _ ^ ^ . ,. 

great fact de- 127. Qucs. W as it at that time a well knovv'ii lact in this 
DrMorten. "^community, that Dr. Wells, and those associated with him in 

their practice, made use of the anaesthetic agent discovered 

by Dr. Wells ? (Objected to.) 

Ans. It was. I spoke of it in my article above referred to 

as a well settled fact. (Answer objected to.) 

128. Ques. At the time the above artic'e was published, 
had any one, to your knowledge, pretended to controvert the 
claims of Dr. Wells, as being the original and onh* discoverer 
of an anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. As applied to gases or vapors, by inhalation, no one 
had. 

129. Ques. How early did you learn that Dr. Wells had 
discovered an anaesthetic agent? 

Ans. I knew of it before January 18, 1845. I cannot state 
the precise date I first heard of it. 

130. Ques. From whom did you learn that such a discov- 
ery was made ? 

Ans. From Dr. Wells, and other dentists. 

131. Ques. Did you also learn the fact of such discovery 
from those who had been operated upon under the influence 
of this agent ? (Objected to.) 

Ans. I did. 

132. Ques. Did all the persons alluded to in your last two 
answers, give Dr. Wells the credit of this discovery ? (Ob- 
jected to.) 

Ans. They did. 

133. Ques. Was your attention very strongly attracted to 
this discovery ? 



77 

Ans. It was. 

134. Ques, From what period did you reside in the same 
house with Dr. Wells, and how long? 

Ans. From the spring of 1845 until his death. 

135. Ques. Was not Dr. Wells a very superior and accom- 
plished dentist? 

Ans. I think he was, and very successful in his profession. 

136. Ques. Had he not a large and lucrative practice at 
the time and after his discovery ? 

Ans. He had that reputation, until he abandoned it, on ac- 
count of ill health. 

137. Ques. Was he not obliged to abandon his profession 
several times, during the hist few years of his life, on acconnt 
of ill health? 

Ans. So he informed me. 

138. Ques. Was not his health seriously affected by the 
experiments he was constantly making upon himself, during 
and after December, 1844, with a view to perfect his dis-^ 
covery, by ascertaining the best anaesthetic agent, and the 
best mode of administering it? 

Ans. Have no knowledge how far his health suffered from 
such experiments. The fact that he was unwell is all I can 
now certainl}^ speak of. 

139. Ques. Do you not know that Dr. Wells, from the time 
of his discovery up to the time of his death, was making im- 
provements, both in the preparation and mode of administer- 
ing the gas ? 

Ans. He was; though most of my certain information was 
derived from Dr. Wells himself; nor can I state the intervals 
with certainty, nor separate his experiments from those of 
other dentists in this city. 

140. Ques. Did not this agent ultimately become, in the 
hands of Dr. Wells, more effective that it was in the first 
instance? 

Ans. So I thought. 

141. Ques. Was it not known, long before the discovery of 
Dr. Weils, that sulphuric ether would produce effects on the 
human system, similar to those produced by nitrous oxyd gas ? 

Ans. It was. 

142. Ques. If it were known that the latter would produce 
insensibility to pain, under dental and surgical operations, 
would it not at once occur to any surgeon or scientihc person, 
that the former would probably produce the same result? 

Ans. I think so. Some of the ethers would be the next 
things inevitably experimented on. 

143. Ques. Is not nitrous oxyd gas an equally efficient 
anaestheiic agent with sulphuric ether? 

Ans. Equally so. 

144. Ques Has not nitrous oxyd gas many advantages 
over sulphuric ether; if so, what? * 

Alls. It has some. It is pleasanter to inhale; produces no 



18 

nausea ; is quicker in its effect, and does not leave as uncom- 
fortable feelings alter recovery from stupor. 

145 Ques. May not the same be said of chloroform as of 
ether? 

Ans. Chloroform is far superior, in many respects, to ether, 
thongh, uncombined,it is sometimes dangerous. 

14o. Ques. Does anything now prevent your using the gas, 
except the mere consideration of convenience. 

Ans. No. 

147. Ques. Did 3'ou have many and repeated conversations 
wilh Dr. Wells, respecting his discovery, in 1845 and 184G? 

Ans. I did. 

148. Ques. Were many of these conversations prior to the 
pretended discovery by Dr. Morton? 

Ans. We had conversations respecting it, more or less, from 
the time of his discovery until his death — what proportion, 
before or after Morton's claim, I cannot say. 

149 Ques. Prior to the pretended discovery by Dr. Morton, 
in 1846, did you know or snspect that any one controverted 
the claims of Dr. Wells, as the discoverer? 

Ans. I did not. 

150. Ques. Do you know that in January, 1845, Dr. AVells 
visited Boston for the purpose of making his discovery known 
to the medical faculty ? 

Ans. I know he was absent, and at that time, either just 
before or just after. He told me he was going, or had just 
been to Boston, lor that purpose, and gave me an account of 
his reception, soon after he returned. 

151. Ques. What account did he give? 

Ans. He said he lectured on the subject, but that an experi- 
ment he tried had partially failed, from the bag being taken 
away too soon ; did not think a fair trial had been given at 
that place. 

152. Ques. Did not Dr. Wells, at all times, claim the dis- 
covery as his own, and did he ever abandon this claim, even 
when he was obliged to relinquish his profession, on account 
of ill health ? 

No pubiica- Ans. Wells always claimed it, and defended it strenuously 

tion bv lam till -i i i *^ 

after "Morton's UUtl I death. 

discovery. j - 3^ Qu8S. Wasuot thc finding out of the fact that the 

human system can be rendered insensible to pain, during 
dental and surgical operations, by some agent, the discovery, 
and the only discovery, in this connexion, which deserves any 
credit? 
This was the Ans. It was tJie discovery par excellence : other thinofs con- 

fiiscovery an- i • i • J j ' ~ 

nounced by ucctcd wjtli it might bc creditable, but in a far less degree. 

MortontoWells ^ - a r\ TS UJ ^J x-'^U 

in the letter of 1^4. Qucs. Havc you had repeated conversations witrx 
Oct. i?^6,P.9.Samuel A. Cooiey, of this city, respecting this discovery ? 
Ans. I have. 

155. Ques. Did he ever, at any time, suggest to you that he 
originated the idea ? 



79 

Ans. I have no recollection that he ever did, until within 
two or three daj^s of this time. He has always defended (so 
it appeared to me) Dr. Wells's claim, and has always pro- 
nounced Morton's preposterous. He has distinctly declared 
to me that Wells deserved the honor of any practical dis- 
covery. (Last part of the answer objected to.) 

Direct examination resumed. 

156. Q,ues. In your answer to question 102, do you speak 
of your practice, or general practice, in administering ana3S- 
thetic agents? 

Ans. I speak particularly of my own; but it is also the 
practice of 'others, so far as I have observed. 

157. Q,ues. Is it not perfectly safe to keep a person under 
the influence of ether, as well while dressing the limb as 
while amputating it ? 

Ans. It is as safe, with this only objection, that the longer 
it is continued, or the oftener repeated, ether, like chloroform, 
appears to depress more the action of the heart. 

158. (Question 157 repeated. 

Ans. I have answered the question, I think, fully, and can 
only add that its safety depends on each particular case. 

159. Glues. In your answer to question 157, did you com- 
pare ether with any other anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. i did. 

160. Ques. Is it not perfectly safe to administer ether, 
while dressing a limb, where it has been administered and 
the patient has undergone a surg^ical operation ? 

Ans. I have no personal knowledge, having never given it 
in such cases. 

161. Q,ues. When did the boy Goodale say to you that he 
was easy during the operation upon him ? 

Ans. Immediately after. 

162. Ques. Who were present? 

Ans. I have already stated io the best of my recollection. 

163. Did you ever see Dr. Wells making any improvements 
in apparatus for administering the gas, before October 1, 
1846? 

Ans. I am not able to state definitely. 4:D 

164. Q,ues. In answer to question 108, you say you "had 
evidence satisfactory to my own mind that such was the 
case." Will you name any person you ever heard say, pre- 
vious to October 1st, 1846, that Dr. Wells made a '^single 411) 
experiment between January 20th, 1845, and October 1st, 
1846, with any anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. So many years have elapsed that I cannot say with 
certainty. 

165. Q.ues. Will you mention any time that Dr. Wells 
spoke or consulted with you respecting the use of anaesthetic 
agents ? 

Ans. Once, certainly, in his oflice, and at other times, 
though the dates are now indistinct. 



80 

166. Qaes. Was that not before the 20th of January, 1845? 
Ans. It was near that time, though the day or week I could 

not swear to. 

167. Q,ues. I refer you to questions and answers 116 and 
] 17. What steps do you know that he took? 

Ans. According to my best recollection he took such evi- 
dence as could then readily be obtained. 

168. Q,ues. What evidence do you know he took ? 

Ans. Cannot now state full}^ but believe he had a certifi- 
cate of his discovery from myself. 

169. Ques. Have you that certificate now, or a copy of it; 
if not, where is the original ? * 

Ans. I have not the original, nor do I know that I have a 
copy. 1 do not know where the original is. 

170. Ques. In answer to question 120 you said "yes," but 
afterwards said what was not taken down ; "that it was not 
exactly what you wished to say." What did you wish to 
say ? 

Ans. I would state that I do not think he would have gone 
to Europe for that purpose only. His principal business, at 
03* least the pecuniary part, was connected with the pictures, 
though after he got there, I have reason to believe, from his 
letters, conversation with his wife, and his own report, after 
his return, that he devoted much attention to the defence of 
his claim. 

171. Ques. Did you ever see any statement published by 
Dr. Wells in defence of, or claiming the discovery of any 
anaesthetic a?ent in surgical operations, before 1st of October, 
1846? 

QCj» Ans. No; his claim up to that was undisputed, so far as I 
know. 

172. Ques. Did you ever see any published statement by 
Dr. Wells, claiming he had made any such discovery, before 
November 12th, 1846? 

Ans. I cannot now say. 

173. Ques. Have j^ou any recollection of any such state- 
ment ? 

Ans. I cannot remem.ber the date of his first communica- 
tion. He defended his claim as soon as any one appeared to 
usurp it. (Last part of the answer objected to.) 

174. Ques. Did 3^ou see a published letter, under the signa- 
ture of H. Wells, written in Paris in February, 1847 ; if yea, 
had you ever seen before a letter on this subject by him pub- 
lished ? 

Ans. I believe I saw everything he published, but cannot 
swear to this in particular ; nor can I state that it was the 
first that I saw. 

175. Ques. At the time you wrote the article you have 
referred to, for the Medical and Surgical Journal, do you 
mean to say that no person had made use of anaesthetic 



81 

agents by inhalation, to prevent pain in surgical operations, 
as a discoveror, but Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I did not say anything about it. J referred, however, 
to Wells's discovery only. 

176. Ques. In 1845, 1846, and 1847, vras Dr. Wells engaged 
in his dental business? 

Ans. He was, I believe, at intervals. 

177. Ques. A large or small portion of time? 
Ans. I cannot now remember. 

178. Ques, In 1845, 1846, and 1847, who was Dr. Wells' 
regular physician? 

Ans. I do not know. 

] 79. Ques. Do you mean to say that Dr. Wells ever told 
you that he was making improvements in his preparation 
and mode of administering the gas from the time of his dis- 
covery to the day of his death ? 

Ans. I do ; but do not mean to say that all the improve- 
ments he spoke of were his own. 

180. Ques. When did he tell you so? 

Ans. I cannot, at this date, specify any particular times; 
seeing him almost daily while he was in the city, particularly 
after my residence in the same house with him. I have no 
means of fixing on any time for any particular conversations, 
I can only speak of the general fact. 

181. Ques. Do you mean to give an affirmative or negative 
answer to question 179 ? 

Ans. I mean to give an affirmative. 

182. Ques. Will you state how Dr. Wells came to make 
use of such language, during his life ? 

Ans. I do not mean to swear to any particular words; only 
that he communicated the fact. 

183. Ques. Was the operation as fully successful, on the 
person you say you saw either Dr. Wells or Dr. Riggs extract 
a tooth, in the winter of 1844-5, as regards the absence of 
pain to the patient, as it was in the case of the boy Goodale ? 

Ans. Should think it about the same. 

184. Ques. Do you know that Dr. Morton had any knowl- 
edge that a tooth could be extracted without pain, until he 
ascertained the fact by experimenting with others ? 

Ans. No. 

185. Ques. How long may a person be kept in a state of 
insensibility to pain, under the influence of nitrous oxyd, with 
entire safety ? 

Ans. I cannot say. 

186. Ques. Does the inhalation of nitrous oxyd gas ever 
produce nausea ? 

Ans. I never knew that effect produced. 

187. Ques. Did you ever inhale nitrous oxyd and ether, 
separately, till you became insensible? 

Ans. No. 

6 



82 



188. Ques. How do you know, then, which leaves the most 
uncomfortable feelings? 

Ans. By the statements of patients, and medical essays on 
the use of ether and nitrous oxyd gas. 

189. Ques. Did you ever hear a statement from any patient 
whom you know had inhaled both ? 

Ans. It is my impression I have, but I cannot now state 
any individual. 

190. Ques. Do you mean to swear that Dr. Wells spoke to 
you respecting any ansesthetic agent he was then using, 
between the 1st of Februar}-, 1845, and 1st of October, 1846? 

Ans. I have no doubt he did, but cannot be sure as to time 
or language. 

191. Ques. Has not S. A. Cooley informed you that Dr. 
Wells got his idea of pulling teeth, without pain, from him ? 

Ans. Never, to my remembrance, until within three or four 
days last past. 

192. Ques. Is not all the information you have with regard 
to any original discovery of the use of any anaesthetic agent 
in surgical operations, hearsay? 

Ans. Yes. 

193. Ques. Have you not taken a very active part in at- 
tempting to establish some claim for Mrs. Wells, in this 
matter ? Have you not advertised in the daily papers in this 
city for persons whom you intend to make witnesses? Have 
you not attended before the Commissioner, and put inter- 
rogatories to other witnesses ? and are you not the adviser of 
Mrs. Wells, in this matter ? 

See H. Com- Aus. I havc taken some interest in Mrs. Wells's case, and 
^[*"''oj^ J^Pj^i; have repeated an advertisement for information, published at 
that he 15 bejthe request of some other friend, because the original adver- 

Attoniey and . '■ . , itttz.y^*. 

Afent. tisement was misunderstood. 1 did put a tew interrogatories, 

at request of Mrs. Wells's counsel, but have not acted as Mrs. 
Wells's counsel, and do not know that I have advised her, 
except to put her case in the hands of counsel, and get all the 
proof she could. 

P. W. ELLSWORTH, M. D. 



St I 



ss. 



United States of America, 
Distinct of Connecticut. 
I, Erastus Smith, a commissioner daly appointed by the 
Circuit Court of the United States, for the District of Con- 
necticut in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the 



8S 

Acts of Congress, entitled " An Act for the more convenient 
taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the 
Courts of the United Stares," passed February 20th, 1812, 
and the Act of Congress, entitled " An Act, in addition to an 
Act, entitled 'An Act for the more convenient taking of affi- 
davits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the 
United States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act, entitled 
*' An Act to establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," 
passed September 24th, 1789, doherehy certify, that the reason 
for taking the foregoing deposition is, and the fact is, the wit- 
ness is material and necessary in the cause in the caption of 
the said deposition named, and that he resides in Hartford. 

I further certify, that a notification of the time and place 
of taking the said deposition, signed by me, was made out and 
served on Elizabeth W. Wells and Charles Wells, to be present 
at the taking of the deposition, and to put interrogatories, if 
he or they might think fit. 

I further certify, that on the 30th day of November and 
after, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and 
fifty-two, I was attended by counsel for petitioner and for 
Elizabeth W. Wells, and by the witness, who was of sound 
mind and lawful age, and the witness by me first care- 
fully examined and cautioned, and sworn to testify the truth, 
the whole truth, and nothingbut the truth, and the deposition 
was by me reduced to writing, in the presence of the witness, 
and from his statement, and after carefully reading the same 
to the witness, subscribed the same, in my presence. I have 
retained the said deposition in my possession, for the purpose 
of sealing the same with my own hand, and forwarding to 
Congress, for which the same was taken. 

And I do further certify, that I am not of counsel tior at- 
torney for either of the parties in the said deposition and 
■caption named, nor in any way interested in the event of the 
cause named in the said caption. 

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, 

this 10th day of December, in the year of our 

r 1 Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 

^ ' '-■ and of the Independence of the United States 

the seventy-seventh. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
United States Commissioner, duly appointed 
by the Circuit Court of the United States, for the 
District of Connecticut in the Second District. 



84 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 

District of Connecticut, 



City of Hartford, and State of Connecticut. ' 

Be it remembered, That on this 18th day of December, in 
the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 
I, Erastus Smith, a Commissioner, duly appointed by the Cir- 
cuit Court of the United States, for the District of Connecti- 
cut, in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts of 
Congress, entitled "An Act for the more convenient taking of 
affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of 
the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, and the Act 
of Congress, entitled "An Act, in addition to an Act, entitled 
'An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits and bail 
in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United States,' " 
passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act, entitled " An Act to es- 
tablish the Judicial Courts of the United Srates," passed Sep- 
tember 24th, 1789, did call and cause to be and personally 
appear before me, at my office at Hartford, in the City of 
Hartford, in the said District of Connecticut, in the State 
aforesaid, Henry A. Goodals, to testify and the truth to say, 
on the part and behalf of the Wm. T. G. Morton, in a certain 
matter, now depending and undetermined, in the Congress of 
the United States, at Washington, wherein said Wm. T. G. 
Morton is memorialist, and Elizabeth W. Wells, et al are 
remonstrants. And the said Henry A. Goodale, being about 
the age of nineteen years, and having been by me first cau- 
tioned and sworn to testify the truth, the whole truth, and 
nothing but the truth, in the matter of controversy aforesaid, 
I did carefully examine the said Henry A. Goodale, and he 
did thereupon depose, testify, and say as follows, viz : 



This is the patient Dr» Ellsworth testifies that Nitrous Oxyd 
was successful upon. 

Henry A. Goodale. 

Q,ues. What is your residence, age, and occupation? 

Ans. I reside in East Hartford; my age nineteen years; am 
a cigar maker. 



«5 

Ques. Have you had a leg amputated, by whom, and when, 
and was any thing administered to you to prevent pain; if 
yea, what, and by whom ? 

Ans. I had a leg amputated by Dr. Ellsworth, I think, 1st 
January, 1848 ; something was given me to prevent pain, by 
Dr. Wells ; I inhaled it from a bag. 

dues. How many times did you inhale from the bag? 

Ans. Twice. 

Qiies. Will you state whether Dr. Ellsworth requested Dr. 
AVells to give it again, because you were in much pain ? 

Ans. He did. 

Ques. What did Dr. Wells say when Dr. Ellsworth requested 
him to give more gas ? 

Ans. He said he thought it would not be best, as I was too 
weak to bear any more ? 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells decline giving any more? 

Ans. He did. 

Ques. During the time Dr. Ellsworth v/as at work upon 
the limb, after the gas was first given, did you experience 
great pain ? 

Ans. 1 did. 

HENRY A. GOODALE. 



United States of America, . 

District of Connecticut. 

I, Erastus Smith, a commissioner duly appointed by the 
Circuit Court of the United States, for the District of Connec- 
ticut in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts 
of Congress, entitled "An Act for the more convenient taking 
of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts 
of the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, and the 
Act of Congress, entitled "An Act, in addition to an Act, en- 
titled 'An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits 
and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United 
States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act, entitled "An 
Act to establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," pas- 
sed September 24th, 1789, do hereby certify, that the reason 
for taking the foregoing deposition is, and the fact is, the wit- 
ness is material and necessary in the cause in the caption of 
of said deposition named. 

I further certify, that on the eighteenth day of December, 
in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty- 



§6 

two, I was attended by H. Cornwall, counsel for \Vm. T. G, 
Motorn, and by the witness, who was of sound mind and law- 
ful age, and the witness by me first carefully examined and 
cautioned, and sworn to testify the truth, the whole truth, and 
nothing but the truth, and the deposition was by me reduced 
to writing, in the presence of the witness, and from his state- 
ment, and after carefully reading the same to the witness, he 
subscribed the same in my presence. 

And I dM further certyfy, that I am not of counsel nor at- 
torney for either of the parties in the said deposition and cap- 
tion named, nor in any way interested in the event of the 
cause named in said caption. 

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal 

this 18th day of December, in the year of our 

r ^1 Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 

^^' **-' and of the Independence of the United States 

the seventy-seventh. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
United States Commissioner, duly appointed, 
by the Circuit Court of the United States, for 
the District of Connecticut in the Second Circuit, 



During the winter of 1844, 1 learned that Dr. H. Wells, den- 
tist, Hartford, Conn., had discovered the mode of extracting 
teeth without pain. This was accomplished by adminis'iering 
to the persons operated upon,exhilirating gas or vapor, which, 
it was asserted, rendered the human system insensible to pain. 
At first I was incredulous of the fact, and received the asser- 
tions of individuals familiar with the operation, with a degree 
of distrust. Being, however, by invitation, a personal witness 
of the process of extracting teeth without pain, under this 
new mode, discovered and practised by Dr. Wells, with so 
much apparent success, I was induced to submit to a personal 
operation, that I might test its utility. The doctor was most 
successful — extracting for me a large, firmly-set, bicuspid 
tooth, without the slightest sensation of pain. 

1 also witnessed, soon after, a repetition of the same pro- 
cess, by Dr. Wells, upon several individuals, accompanied, in 
every instance, with perfect success. 

Hartford, March 27, 1847. 

State of Coxxecticct, 

Hartford count}^ ss : 

City of Hartford, March 27, 1847. 
Then personally appeared before me, F. C. Goodrich, of 
this city, who signed the foregoing affidavit, and made solemn 
oath that the same was true. 

[l. s.] Given under my hand and the seal of said cit3\ 

A. IsL COLLINS, Mayor. 



87 

This may certify that during the fall or early part of the 
winter of 1844, (I am not positive as to the precise time,) I 
was induced to try the experiment of having a tooth extracted 
while under the influence of nitrous oxyd gas, which was per- 
formed by Dr. H. Wells, dentist, of this city. Dr. E. E. Marcy, 
of this city, was present during the operation, and suggested 
to Dh Wells, at that time, the inhalation of pure sulphuric 
ether, in preference to nitrous oxyd gas. He recommended 
it because it was more easily prepared, and produced, when 
used under the same circumstances, precisely the same effects 
as nitrous oxyd gas. The propriety of using pure sulphuric 
ether, the nature of its effects upon the system, were discussed 
at some length between Dr. Wells and Dr. Marcj^, in my 
hearing. Dr. Marcy was very sanguine in his opinion of its 
effects upon the system — its capability of rendering it insen- 
sible to pain under severe surgical operations, and expressed 
his determination to use the sulphuric ether himself in a sur- 
gical operation which he expected to perform in a few days. 

I make this statement not because I wish to come before 
the public in connection with this discovery, but because facts 
identify me with it. I had much rather remain silent than 
have my name in any way connected with the subject under 
controversy; but it is an act of justice due to Mr. Wells that 
1 should make public this fact. F. C. GOODRICH. 

Hartford, July 6, 1847. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: 

District of Connecticut, } 

City of Hartfordy and State of Connecticut. S 

Be it remembered. That on this fourth day of December, in 
the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty- 
two, I, Erastus Smith, a Commissioner, duly appointed by the 
Circuit Court of the United States, for the District of Con- 
necticut, in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the 
Acts of Congress, entitled " An Act for the more convenient 
taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the 
Courts of the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, 
and the Act of Congress entitled " An Act, in addition to an 
Act, entitled ' An Act for the more convenient taking of affi- 
davits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the 
United States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act entitled 
"An Act to establish the Judicial Courtsof the United States," 
passed September 24th, 1789, did call and cause to be and 
personally appear before me, at my office at Hartford, in the 
city of Hartford, in the said District of Connecticut, in the 
State aforesaid, Francis C. Goodrich, to testify and the truth 
to say, on the part and behalf of the petitioner, in a certain 
matter now depending and undetermined, in the Congress of 
the United States, at Washington, wherein W. T. G Morton 
is petitioner or memorialist. And the said witness being 
about the age of thirty-two years, and having been by me 



m 

first cautioned and sworn to testify the truth, the whole truth, 
and nothing but the truth, in the matter of controversy afore- 
said, I did carefully examine the said Goodrich, and he did 
thereupon depose, testify, and say as follows, viz : 

F. C. Goodrich. December 4. 

Q.ues. What is your age, residence, and occupation ? 

Ans. My age is thirty-two ; residence Hartford ; occupation 
a printer. 

Glues. Was you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace 
Wells? 

Ans. Yes. 

Q,ues. Have you any personal know^ledge of any discovery 
made by him of the use of ansesthetic agents in surgical ope- 
rations ? 

Ans. I have. 

Q,ues. Was you present when Dr. Wells claimed to have 
first originated any such idea? 

Ans. I don't know I ever heard him claim it, in so many 
words. 

Ques. What do you mean by saying you have personal 
knowledge of any such discovery ? 

Ans. I mean 1 have had a tooth extracted, by Dr. Wells, 
while I was under the influence of the nitrous oxyd gas. 

Ques. When? 

Ans. It was in November or December, 1844. 

Ques. How do you know it was in November or Decem- 
ber? 

Ans. It was when the ground was frozen hard, and before 
snow ; after it was extracted I had an overcoat on, and 
brought the collar up, and tied a handkerchief round to pre- 
vent cold ; this was the next evening. 

Ques. Is there anything by which you can determine that 
it was before the 11th of December, 1844, and might it not 
have been between the 11th of December and the 18th of 
January following ? 

Ans. I have no means of ascertaining that it was before 
the nth of December; I can only judge from the weather; I 
know it was before Januar}', 1845. 

Ques. Might it not have been after the 11th of December? 

Ans. It might have been, but I think it was not. 

Ques. Who was present beside Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. Dr. Marcy, Dr. Riggs, and Dr. Ketteridge. 

Ques. Was Dr. Ketteridge a partner of Dr. Marcy? 

Ans. He was. 

Ques. Have you any personal knowledge that Dr. Wells 
ever made use of ether as an anaesthetic agent in any surgi- 
cal or dental operation ? 

Ans. No. 

Qaes. Have you any personal knowledge that ether was 
ever used by any person, in any such operation, before the 
fall of 1846? 



I 



89 

Ans. I have not. 

Ques. Have you ever seen Dr. Wells extract any other 
tooth, under the influence of nitrous oxyd, than your own ? if 
yea, who and when ? 

Ans. I have; I saw him extract several for J. Gaylord 
Wells, and one for Wm. H. Burleigh ; Wells's were all ex- 
tracted at one time, soon after mine was extracted, and Bur- 
leigh's soon after ; I should think within a week after mine 
was extracted. 

Q,ues. Did you ever know or hear that Dr. Wells extracted 
any teeth, under the influence of any anaesthetic agent, after 
his return from Boston, in January, 1845, and before October 
1st, 1846? 

Ans. I don't know that I did. 

Ques. Did you ever make an affidavit respecting the pulling 
of your tooth by Dr. Wells? If yea, at whose request? 

Ans. I did, at Dr. Wells's request. 

Ques. Were the affidavits of Burleigh, Wells, and Milo 
Lee, also made about the same time ? 

Ans. I think they were. 

Ques. Were you and the others making affidavits furnished 
a supper at the United States Hotel, by Dr. Wells, at the 
time you gave said affidavits ? 

Ans. No. 

Ques. Were you furnished supper by Dr. Wells, about this 
time? 

Ans. I w^as invited by Dr. Wells to a supper at the United 
States Hotel, after my affidavit was given, and after his re- 
turn from France ? 

Ques. Was not your affidavit taken after Dr. Wells returned 
from France ? 

Ans. My impression is it was before he went, but I cannot 
say certainly. 

Ques. What time did you make your affidavit? 

Ans. I think it w^as in March, 1847; I now think it was 
after Wells's return from France. 

Cross-examined. 

Ques. by Bulkley. Was the supper given as an inducement, 
or promised for your affidavit ? 

Ans. It was not. F. C. GOODRICH. 



United States of America, ) H tf 1 

District of Connecticut. ) ' -^ ' 



I, Erastus Smith, a Commissioner duly appointed by the 
Circuit Court of the United States, for the District of Con- 
necticut, in the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the 
Acts of Congress, entitled "An Act for the more convenient 
taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the 
Courts of the United States," passed February 20th, 1812, and 



90 

the Act of Congress entitled " An Act, in addition to an Act, 
entitled 'An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits 
and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United 
States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act entitled "An 
Act to establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," 
passed September 24th, 1789, do hereby certify that the reason 
for taking the foregoing deposition is, and the fact is, the wit- 
ness is material and necessary in the cause, in the caption of 
the said deposition named, and that he resides in Hartford. 
I further certify that a notification of the time and place of 
taking the said deposition, signed by me, was made out and 
served on the Elizabeth W. Wells and Charles Weils, to be 
present at the taking of the deposition, and to put interroga- 
tories, if they .might think fit. I further certify thsit on the 4th 
day of December, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight 
hundred and fifty-two, I was attended by counsel for petitioner 
and for Mrs. VVells, and by the witness, who was of sound 
mind and lawful age, and the witnsss by me first carefully 
examined and cautioned, and sworn to testify the truth, the 
whole truth, and nothing but the truth; and the deposition 
was by me reduced to writing, in the presence of the witness, 
and from his statement ; and after carefully reading the same 
to the witness, he subscribed the same in my presence. I 
have retained the said deposition in my possession, for the 
purpose of sealing the same with my own hand, and forward- 
ing to Congress, for which the same is taken. And I do fur- 
ther certify that I am not of counsel or attorney for either of 
the parties in the said deposition and caption named, nor in 
any way interested in the event of the cause named in the 
said caption. 

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal, 

this 10th day of December, in the year of our 

r , -] Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, 

'- * '^ and of the independence of the United States 

the seventy-seventh. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
United States Commissioner, duly appointed 
by the Circuit Court of the United States, 
for the District of Connecticut in the Second Circuit, 



Deposition, No. 1, of J. M. Riggs. 

I, John M. Riggs, surgeon dentist, of the city and county of 
Hartford, State of Connecticut, in the United States of Amer- 
ica, being of lawful age, and duly sworn, do depose and say : 

That on or about the first of November, Anno Domini one 
thousand eight hundred and forty-four, / was consulted by 



91 



Horace Wells, surgeon dentist, of this city, county and State see cooiey's 
aforesaid, as to the practicability of administering nitrous parSaJs h£e 
oxyd gas, prior to the performance of dental or surgical op-^'^^^^'*^ 
orations. 

Thinking favorably of the suggestion, it was decided to 
make trial of the gas in question ; and on the day following, 
per agreement, the protoxyd of nitrogen was administered to 
Horace Wells, aforesaid, at his request, and I extracted one 
of his superior molar teeth ; he manifesting no signs of suffer- 
ing, and stating that he felt no pain during the operation. 

Encouraged and gratified with the success of the first ex- ^^^ '"' ^^efore 
periment, the aforesaid Wells and mj^self continued to admin- Commissioher: 
ister to various individuals the said gas, and to extract teeth.^^.Q^'^^mToFme 
while under its influence, in the presence of several gentle- p®^"" p'^*^""*- 
men, until fully satisfied of its usefulness and applicability in 
surgical operations. I further affirm that the said Wells 
avowed his intention to communicate the discovery to the 
dental and medical faculty, and, in pursuance of that inten- 
tion, proceeded to the city of Boston, State of Massachusetts, 
for that purpose ; whilst I continued to use the said gas with 
great success — the patients assuring me they felt no pain. 

JOHN M. RIGGS. 



State of Connecticut, 

Hartford County, ss : 

City of Hartford, March 27, 1847. 
Personally appeared John M. Riggs, and made solemn oath 
to the truth of the foregoing affidavit, by him subscribed be- 
fore me. Given under my hand, and the seal of said city, the 
day and year above vv^ritten. 

[L. S.] Given under my hand and the seal of said city, 

A. M. COLLINS, Mayor. 



I, John M. Riggs, surgeon dentist, of the city and county of 
Hartford, State of Connecticut, in the United States of Amer- 
ica, beiig of lawful age, and duly sworn, do depose and say: 

That during the months of November and December, 1844, 
I made use of the inhalation of nitrous oxyd gas, both alone 
and in conjunction with Dr. Horace Wells, for the prevention 
of pain during the extraction of teeth. 

I declare that these experiments were repeated duringthese 
two months not less than twenty times, more or less, and 
uniformly with entire success — thus demonstrating conclu- 



m 

siv e]y the anaesthetic properties of this substance. I also fur- 
ther declare that I was perfectly aware of the anaesthetic 
properties of the vapor of sulphuric ether, during the period 
above alluded to, and previous to January 1, 1845, and that 
See his an- 1 made usc of the nitrous oxyd gas in my dental operations 
!ogl7ory° ci-2-i simply because I believed then, as I believe now^that this last 
fntenogSry °'^ uamcd agcut was more efficient, safer, and altogether prefer- 
148, at p. 104. able to the ether vapor as an anaesthetic agent, and not be- 
cause I entertained any doubts respecting the pain-preventing 
properties of the last named article. 

I also declare that the properties of ether, as an anaesthetic 

agent, were frequently discussed by Dr. Wells and myself, 

See exaraina- during the mouths above named, and that from one or more 

Ji°^^^^f2^^gf- successful trials, made with the ether, during the year 1844, 

p. 95, qnes. 14. by Dr. Wells and Marcy, its anaesthetic powers were fully 

demonstrated, but a general use was not made of it at that 

time, on account of its being more difficult to inhale, more 

offensive, and, as was supposed by Dr. Marcy, not so safe as 

the nitrous oxj'd gas. 

The anaesthetic properties of the ether vapor and the gas 
were not only fully known and appreciated at this time by 
Dr. Wells and myself, but by Drs. Ellsworth, Fuller, Marcy ^ 
and probably many other physicians and citizens of Hartford ; 
and I am only astonished that any man or men could have 
had the hardihood to come forward, two years after, and 
claim for themselves a discovery which had already excited 
the wonder and astonishment of hundreds of the citizens of 
See note on ^^^'^^'°^^' ^'^^ Q\en Called forth from Dr. Ellsworth a distinct 
p- "6- allusion to it in an article published in the Boston Medical 

and Surgical Journal, some time in 1845. Since November, 
1844, the nitrous oxyd gas has, for the most part, been em- 
ployed by me in my dental operations, as an anaesthetic agent, 
in preference to the ether or chloroform. The ease and com- 
fort with which it may he inhaled, and its entire efficacy, have 
amply repaid me for the extra trouble of preparing the gas. 

In conclusion, I take occasion to express my opinion that, 
if Hartford had possessed a hospital, or ample surgical facili- 

See Wells's^. i • i t> ^ ^ .1 \. xi J- p^ta ^T7 ii 

own account of ties which Boston posscsscs, that the discovery oi Dr. Wells 
till BoYton^Hot- would havc been more minutely and fully carried out in its 
pitai, and that jg^^jig jj^ 1844. It mQSt bc remembered that surgical cases, 

W 3.rr6ri find (~j ^ 

Haywood, two In Hartford, are "few and far between," and that we have, 
were^macf °in- comparativel}^ no opportunities for the general or common 
tSf' hfrn introduction of any article like the one under consideration, 
with^^^ much Boston, wlth its array of surgeons, its hospitals, its medical 
and other journals, all eager to secure the credit of the dis- 
covery to the Athens of America, was the first city, after 
Hartford, where Wells communicated his wonderful discov- 
ery. There he met with a reception so cold, that after a 
single imperfect trial of the gas, amidst the sneers of those 
around him, he left Boston in disgust and sick at heart, at the 
unfair disposition manifested towards him. 



kindness. 



93 

I also further declare, that subsequently to Dr. Wells's visit 
to Boston, for the purpose above named, that Dr. W. T. 
G. Morton, of that city, a former pupil of Dr. Wells, during ^;f/Ji,™9;[,^ 
the spring or summer of 1845, called at two different times, ^03. 
at the latter's office, which was adjoining my own, in the 
eity of Hartford, and requested Dr. Wells to inform him as 
to the manner of preparing nitrous oxyd gas for use, and said 
Morton was by him referred to me, (Dr. Well's apparatus 
being at that time in my possession,) and also to Dr. Charles 
T. Jackson, of Boston, as professional chemist, for said infor- 
mation. What connection there may have been between the 
respective visits of Drs. Wells and Morton, to Boston and 
Hartford, and the subsequent efforts of r>rs. Jackson and 
Morton, to secure a patent, the public can judge. It is my 
firm belief, that all the knowledge possessed by Drs. Jackson 
and Morton, upon the subject of pain prevention, by means of 
anaesthetic agents, originated with Dr. Horace Wells, and 
was by him communicated to them, and that to him should 
be awarded the merit of this most important discovery. 

JOHN M. RIGGS. 



City of Hartford: On the thirteenth day of Novemberj 
A. D. 1849, the above named John M. Riggs, personally ap- 
peared before me, the subscriber. Mayor of Hartford, and 
made oath that the foregoing certificate, by him subscribed, 
is true. 

In testimony whereof I have subscribed the same, and 
[L. S.] caused the city seal to be hereunto affixed, the day 
and year last above written. 

PHILLIP RIPLEY. 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA : 

District of Connecticut, ) 

City of Hartford and State of Connecticut. \ ^^' 

Be it remembered, That on this 30th day of November, in the 
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, and sub- 
sequently, I, Krastus Smith, a Commissioner, duly appointed i)y the 
Circuit Court of the United States, for the District of Connecticut, in 
the Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts of Congress, 



u 

entitled " An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits and 
bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United States," 
passed February 20th, 1812, and the Act of Congress entitled "An 
Act, in addition to an Act, entitled 'An Act for the more convenient 
taking of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts 
of the United States,' " passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act entitled 
" An Act to establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," 
passed September 24th, 1789, did call and cause to be and personally 
appear before me, at my office, at Hartford, in the City of Hartford, 
in the said District of Connecticut, in the State aforesaid, John M. 
Riggs, to testify and the truth to say, on the part and behalf of the 
Wm. T. G. Morton, in a certain matter now depending and undeter- 
mined, in the Congress of the United States, at Washington, wherein 
Wm. T. G. Morton is memorialist, and Elizabeth W. Wells et al are 
remonstrants* And the said John M. Riggs, being about the age of 
forty years, and having been by me first cautioned and sworn to tes- 
tify the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, in the mat- 
ter of controversy aforesaid, I did carefully examine the said John M. 
Riggs, and he did thereupon depose, testify, and say as follows, viz : 



Dr. J. M. Riggs. 

1. Ques. What is your age and occupation? 
Ans. I am forty ; I am a dentist. 

2. Ques. How long have you resided in Hartford? 
Ans. About twelve years. j 

3. Were you acquainted with the late Dr. Horace Wells? il 
Ans. I was well acquainted with him. 

4. Ques. Do you know Dr. S. A. Cooley ? 
Ans. I know S. A. Cooley, who is called doctor, from having been 

in a drug store. 

5. Ques. Was Cooley in your office, or Dr. Wells's office, on the 
11th of December, 1844? 

Ans. He was in Dr. Wells's office at that time ; I think, without 
doubt, that is the date. 

6. Ques. What other persons were present? 
Ans. Mr. Colton, who gave the gas, and had a lecture at Union 

Hall, Hartford, the evening previous ; myself, Dr. Wells, and I think 
two or three others, whose names I do not recollect. 

7. What time in the day was it they came to Dr. Wells's office? 
Ans. I think between ten and twelve o'clock, A. M. 

8. Ques. Did Dr. Wells, Cooley, and Colton, and the other per- 
sons, come to Dr. Wells's office together? 

Ans. I do not know ; my impression is they came together. 

9. Ques. Do you know from where they came, at that time ? 
Ans. I do not know ; but they came with a bag of gas, and as the 

gas was at Union Hall, I supposed they came from that place. 

10. Ques. Was you present at Union Hall when Dr. Cooley took 
the gas, and injured himself? 

Ans. I was not present, I think. 



95 

11. Ques. Do you not know ibat Dr. Wells received the idea of 
extracting teeth without pain, by inhaling nitrous oxyd gas, from 
Cooley, or from seeing him hurt himself under its influence ? 

Ans. I do not know the fact ; my impression is Dr. Cooley hurt 
himself under the influence, but as I was not present, do not know- 

12. Ques. Did not Dr. Wells tell you that he was present when 
Cooley received the injuries, under the influence of the gas ? 

Ans. I think he did. 

13. Ques- When was the first operation you ever performed when ^ ^ 

. . 11. n r x n subsequent to 

the patient was under the influence or ether? Morton's disco- 

Ans. About two years after this use of nitrous oxyd gas? soon J^JJ^y^^j p Jj 
after it began to make a noise in Boston. 

14. Ques. Will you state the first time you ever saw ether ad- 
ministered in a surgical operation? 

Ans. I never saw it administered in surgical operations, except 
as I administered it. 

15. Ques. What took place December 11th, 1844, at Wells's 
office, when Cooley, Wells, Coltoii, and others, were present? 

Ans. Dr. Wells, a few minutes after I went in, and after conver- 
sation, took a seat in the operating chair ; I examined the tooth to 
be extracted, with a glass, as I usually do ; Wells took the hag of gas 
from Mr. Colton, and sat with it in his lap, and I stood by his side ; 
Wells then breathed the gas until he was much afl?ected by it ; his 
head dropped back; I put my haiid to his chin — he opened his mouth, 
and I extracted the tooth ; his mouth still remained open some time ; 
I held up the tooth in the instsument, that tho others might see it, 
they standing partially back of the screen, and were looking on ; Dr. 
Wells soon recovered from the influence of the gas, so as to know 
what he was about — discharged the blood from his mouth, swung his 
hand and said, "A new era in tooth pulling;" he likewise said it did 
not hurt him at all; we were all much elated, and conversed about 
it for an hour after. 

16. Ques. Were the effects of th& gas on Dr. Wells similar to 
its effects on others that you had seen inhale it at the Hall, or at any 
previous time you had seen nitrous oxyd gas inhaled? 

Ans. No, sir — not similar toothers ; he took it in larger quantities 
than I had seen exhibited, or it had a greater effect on him, for in the 
other cases the bag is taken away before the person inhaling is to- 
tally insensible. 

17. How many days before this was it that you saw Dr. Wells 
take the gas, and commence a speech? 

Ans. I did not see him take it, but understood he took it the even- 
inq: before. 

18. Ques. Did not Wells tell you he and Cooley had taken the 
gas the evening before you extracted the tooth? 

Ans. It is my impression he did ; he came to my office afler the 
exhibition. 

19. Ques. Did you ever see nitrous oxyd gas administered before 
this? 

Ans. I had ; while in college had taken it myself. 

20. Ques. How long did you ever see any person inhale nitrous 
oxyd gas ? 

Ans. I never timed any one, and cannot say. 



96 

21. Ques. Did you ever see anyone drop the bag while inhaling 
the gas ? 

Ans. I think I have. 

22. Ques. Had you ever se»n any surgical operation performed 
by the use of any anaesthetic agent, previous to your pulling Dr. 
Wells's tooth 1 

Ans. No, sir. 

23. Ques. Did you ever see Dr. Wells extract a tooth, with the 
patient under the influence of nitrous oxyd gas. ? 

Ans. Yes, many. 

24. Ques. Who was the first person whose tooth you saw Wells 
extract, while under the influence of nitrous oxyd? 

Ans. I can't tell. 

25. Ques. Who was the second ? 
Ans. I can't say, positively. 

26. Ques. Was the first person a male or a femal? 

Ans. It was a male; the only ones for weeks were males. 

27. Ques. Who was the third person Wells so operated upon ? 
Ans. I cannot speak as to their order. 

28. Qaes. How long after Wells's tooth was extracted was it that 
he extracted a tooth under the influence of nitrous oxyd ? 

Ans. As soon as we could get an apparatus for making gas, which 
was in a few days — could not say how many. 

29. Q,ues. Was J Gaylord Wells among the first three or four to 
w^hom Dr. Wells administered nitrous oxyd ? 

Ans. I could not say positively he was among the three or four 
first, but he was among the first to whom Dr. Wells administered it. 

30. Ques. How many persons can you state Dr. Wells adminis- 
tered nitrous oxyd to, previous to his going to Boston, of your own 
personal knowledge ? 

Q-y> Ans. I cannot state the exact number, but to quite a number. 

31. Ques. How do you know this ? 

q3' Ans. I know it from being present to many of them. 

32. Ques. How many will you swear to as having seen Wells 
administer it? 

0:;j=' Ans. I cannot say. 

33. Ques. Can you say whether one or a hundred? 

Ans. It was more than one, and I don't think it was a hundred. 
O:^ 33^ Ques. How many more than one ? 
OCr" Ans. I cannot swear as to the exact number. 

34. Ques. How many persons did Wells give the gas to that you 
knew, and what are their names? 

Q^ Ans. I cannot state any name except J. Gaylord Wells, at present. 

35. Ques. How many of the operations you saw performed by 
Dr. Wells were upon males ? 

(C" Ans. All of them were on males. 

36. Ques. How many of them did you converse with? 
Q3^ Ans. I cannot tell. 

37^ Ques. Did you converse with any of them ? 
(Cr" Ans. I did. 

38. Qnes. Were they citizens of Hartford? 
Q3' Ans. I could not say whether all were citizens of Hartford? 

89. Ques. Were any of them, except J. G. Wells? 



97 

Ans. My impression is some of them resided here, -C^ 

40. Ques. Have you ever conversed with them since ? 

Ans. I have met but very few of them — don't recollect conversing 4ID 
with any one, except J. G. Wells. 

41. Ques. Which of them have you met? 

Ans. I do not recollect the names of any one, ^ 

42. Ques. Who generally assisted Wells, besides yourself, in ex- 
tracting teeth ? 

Ans. I do not know ; he required but little assistance. 

43. Ques. When did you first administer nitrous oxyd for extract- 
ing teeth ? 

Ans. Before the 1st of January, 1845. ^pO 

44. Ques. What was the name of the first patient? 

Ans. 1 don't remember.; we charged nothing during these experi- ^ 
ments, and I have no means of knowing. 

45. Ques. How long did you continue to extract teeth without 
any charge ? 

Ans. I should think for two or three weeks after Wells got up the 
apparatus. 

46. Ques. Was your first experiment on a male or female ? 
Ans. On a male. 

47. Ques. Can you state the name of the second person, and 
whether a male or female, aged or young, a citizen or a stranger ? 

Ans. Cannot state the name. I think it was a male, as all our 
first experiments were on males. I do not recollect the age, or 
whether a citizen or stranger ; I think a citizen, as pretty much all 
our subjects were citizens, at that time. 

48. Ques. Who was the third person? ^ 
Ans. I can't tell the person's name. 

49. Ques* Can you fix any definite time when you began to 
charge ? 

Ans. I cannot state the exact time when we began to receive pay. 

50. Ques. Was il before or after Wells went to Boston ? 

Ans. I cannot fix the time as before or after ; my impression is it 
was after. 

51. Ques. Ib there anything in your books to fix the time ? 

Ans' Yes ; there is to fix a time, but I cannot say it was the first 
time, as I might have been paid. 

52. Ques. Will you please produce them ? 
Witness brings in his book. 

53. Ques. Have you any entry of any charge in the month of 
January, 1845 ? 

Ans. I do not see any, at present. I now find one of January 23, 
1845. 

54. Ques. Please state the manner of keeping your books? 

Ans. 1 keep no regular journal and ledger. I intend to do a cash 
business ; when a person has work done, and does not pay, I enter 
it. I enter all the work for filling, whether paid or not. When I do 
not finish the work, I make an entry, and leave a space ordinarily, 
if they make another engagement to come in a few days ; and when 
they come, I enter the charge directly under the former charge, al- 
though there may be a page of charges made between the time of 
the two charges, which are so put together. When the space is 

7 



98 

filled up, if it don't embrace all the charges, I turn over to the next 
blank leaf, and give another space. If a person has any filling done, 
I enter it on ray book ; and when he pays, I balance it, and square 
the account. 

55. Ques. Do you not leave space enough to enter down what a 
patient might have for a year ? 

Ans. Possibly I do. I sometimes leave from one-eighth to half a 
page. 

56. Ques. Do you not, if occasion requires, put all the dates for a 
year in this one-eighth or one-half page so left? 

Ans. All I do for that person, provided the place is not filled up 
unless he pays the bill. If he doos pay the bill, a new account is 
opened on the day his new account commences. 

57. Ques. Please look at page 81. Say whether the charge of 
January ^Sd is on that page ? 

Ans. It is. Please have charge marked by the commissioner. 
53. Ques. Have you had said charge marked by the commission- 
er ? 

Ans. I have. 

59. Ques. Please look at this charge, and see if the words " he 
felt no pain," is not interlined between that charge and the previous 
one. 

Ans. It is. 

60. Ques. Have you examined your books thoroughly, and do you 
find any other charge before or in the month of January, 1845, where 
you extracted teeth under the influence of nitrous oxyd ; if yea, please 
exhibit the charge ? 

Ans. I have no other charge before or in the month of January. 

61. Ques. Have you any such charge in the month of February, 
1345 ? 

Ans. I believe not. 

62. Ques. Have you any such charge in the month of March, 
1845? 

Ans. I have. 

63. Ques. To whom did you administer the gas in March, 1845 ? 
Ans. To Miss Elizabeth Williams. 

64. Ques. For what purpose ? 
Ans. For extracting teeth. 

65. Ques. Was the operation successful? 

Ans. I don't remember, but think it was. I have no record as to 
the circumstances ; nor do I recollect whether I took out one tooth 
or more. 

66. Ques. W^ill you please exhibit your book to commissioner, 
and have charge to Miss Williams marked ? (Book exhibited, and 
charge marked E. S.) Have you any such charge in the months of 
April, May, or June, 1845 ? 

Ans. I have none. 

67. Ques. Have you any such charge in the month of July, 1845 ; 
if yea, what day in the month ? 

Ans. I have a charge July 26, 1845. 

68. Ques. Will you please produce your book, and have the charge 
marked by the commissioner ? 

(Book exhibited, and charge marked E. S., page 131.) 



99 

69. Ques. Will you state exactly what the charge is on your book 
and to whom ? '' ' 

Ans. The charge is to Wm. H.Burleigh, 1845, July 26 "To See Burleigh 's 
eiiracting tooth and fang, having administered to him nitrous oxyd Si' oTe "tion 
or exhiierating gas, by which influence he experienced no pain what- ?^«^'"'' p'"^ 
ever," $1 50. 

70. Ques. Was not all the words in said charge, after the word 
Jang, mterlined. or written subsequently to the other part of said 
charge, and with different ink ? 

Ans. It vvas written at the time the charge was made, on the day 
the charge bears date, and all written at one time. 

71. Q.ies. Have you any other such charge in July, 1845? 
Ans. 1 have. ^ 

72. Will you please produce you book, and have the charge mark- 
ed by the commissioner? (Book exhibited and charge marked E. S., 
page y3.) ' 

73. Ques. Will you state what this charge is ? 

Ans. Mr. G. S. Beach, 1845, July 26th, "to extracting tooth, after 
admmistermg nitric oxyd gas. 

IsIsV^'^'* ^^""^ ^""^ any other charge, to any person, in July, 

Ans. I believe not. 

75. Ques. Have you any memoranda on your book, in July, with 
reterence to having adminstered the nitrous oxyd in dental opera- 
tions? if yea, please give it exactly, and the page. 

Ans On page 1311 have the following entry, under the charge to 
Wm. H Burleigh: "I extracted 7 teeth this P. M., the patients being 
undeT the influence of this gas ; they all declared they felt no pain." 

7b. Ques. In taking out the 7 referred to in the memorandum, did 
your count the teeth extracted from Burleigh and Beach ? 

Ans. I cannot tell. 

76. Ques. When was your next charge ? 

Ans. September, between the 5th and 8th, 1845. 

77. Ques. Will you please present your book and have the charge 
marked by the commissioner? ^ 

(Book exhibited and charge marked E. S., on page 141.) 

78. Ques. Will you please state the charge '? 

Ans 1845, date omitted, to R. G. Drake, "to extracting tooth 
atter administering nitric oxyd gas, $1." 

79. Ques. When is your next charge ? 
Ans. September lOth, 1845. 

80. Ques. Please produce your book and have charge marked ? 
(Kook exhibited and charge marked E. S., pao-e 142.) 

81. Ques. Will you stale that charge? ^' 

Ans. Wm. S. Thompson, September 10th, 1845, "to extracting 

alone f^^^^^' '"'"^^"^ "''"''' ''''^^ ^^'' ^^""^ ^"^ '"^^^ ^' ^^' ^^™ 

82. Ques. When is your next charge? 
Ans. March 13th, 1846. 

ma^rkedH"^'' ^'^^ ^""^ P"'"'^"'^® ^''"'' ^''''^ ^""^ ^^^® *^^« ^^^^g® 
(Book produced and charge marked E. S., on page 176.) 
84. Ques. Was this charge made on the 13th of March, 1846?. 



160 

Ans. Yes. 

85. Ques. Was not this charge interlined after you had carried 
Richardson's account to page 223 of your book? 

Ans. I think not ; but I omitted to carry out the charge until after 
I had drawn the line for footing up, and the figure 1 is crowded near 
the figure 2 of the last charge. 

86. Ques. To whom is this charge made ? 
Ans. To E. B. Richardson. 

87. Ques. Did not Richardson and Thompson request you to make 
the gas and administer it to them separately? 

Ans. Yes, sir. 

88. Ques. When is your next charge, and to whom ? 
Ans. My next charge is July 17th, 1846, to Benj. Webster. 

89. Ques. Will you present your book and have said charge 
marked by the commissioner? 

(Book produced, charge marked E. S., page 210.) 

90. Ques. Please state the charge. 

Ans. "To extracting two teeth, by giving nitric oxyd gas, $1." 

91. Ques. Did Mr. Webster request you to prepare and adminis- 
ter the gas to him; and did you not advise him that it was somewhat 
unsafe ? 

Ans. He requested me to give it to him; whether I had any made 
or not at the time, I cannot say ; I should not have given it if he had 
not requested it. I do not think I advised him it was unsafe, for I 
never considered it unsafe, if pure. 

sitiorof No?. 92. Ques. Have you any other charge on yourbook ; if yea, when 

ia«,j. g^jj(j tQ whom ? 

Ans. I have one, made November 2d, l846,to E. B. Richardson. 

93. Ques. Please produce your book and have this charge marked) 
by the commissioner? 

Book produced ; charge marked E. S., page 223. I 

94. Ques. Please state this charge, and whether your last? 
Ans. I believe it is the last. " To extracting tooth, by nitric oxyd 

gas, $1." 

95. Ques. How many patients, in all, did you administer nitrous 
oxyd to ? 

Ans. It is impossible for me to tell, any more than the number of 
teeth I have extracted without using it. 

96. Ques. How many times did you administer it in the w ter of i 
1845? 

Ans. I cannot tell the exact number of times — quite a number. 

97. Ques. What do you mean by quite a number ? 
Ans. It might range from ten to fifty. 

98. Ques. Do you mean to say you administered the gas in 
January and February, 1845, to from ten to fifty persons for dental 
operations ? 

Ans. Yes, sir, that is as near as I can get. I think that would 
cover it. 

99. Qaes. Will you give the names of the patients, or so many of 
them as you remember? 

Ans. Geo. Robinson's son is the only one I now recollect? 

100. Do you mean to say that you administered the nitrous oxydl 
as many as ten times in January and February, 1845 ? I 

Ans. I do. 



101 

101. Ques. Who was present at any time when you administered 
it? 

Ans. I cannot say ; sometimes one, sometimes half a dozen were 
in my office when it was given. 

102. Ques. Did any of these patients ever detain you, in conse- 
quence of their being excited, or any other cause resulting from the 
administration of nitrous oxyd ? 

Ans. I do not remember any aggravated or serious cases. 

103. Ques. Did you ever administer nitrous oxyd for the purpose 
of extracting teeth, and not succeed ? 

Ans. I do not recollect. 

104. Were not some of the persons so excited you could not con- 
trol them without asijistance ? 

Ans. No. 

105. Ques. Do you mean to say that all these cases, from ten to 
fifty, in January and February, 1845, were perfectly successful? 

Ans. They v*^ere successful, so far as the effect of the gas was con- 
cerned ; they might not be successful for the number of teeth some- 
times necessary to be extracted. 

106. Ques. What do you mean by " not successful for the number 
of teeth necessary to be extracted ?" 

Ans. I might give it to a patient who wished three or four teeth 
extracted, and only get out a part before he would come to so as to 
feel or suffer pain. 

107. Ques. What was the first dental operation you saw Dr. ^^^g^^>]* ^^^^• 
Wells perform after he returned from Boston in January, 1845, while i4i, and 142, 
his patient was under the influence of nitrous oxyd? p* ^^ * 

Ans. I don't remember. 

108. Ques. Will you swear he performed any after his return in 
1845? 

Ans. I can't directly swear that he did. My impression is that he 
did. 

109. Ques. Upon whom ? 

Ans. I don't remember any person to whom he gave it. 

110. Ques. Did you make an arrangement with Dr. Wells to take 
his dental business in, or about 1st April, 1845? 

Ans. He assigned his business to me at one time. The date I 
cannot now tell. He gave me a card which was published in the 
Courant or Times, or both. 

111. Ques. Were you not the first person he transferred his busi- 
ness to after his return from Boston, and was not his office the 
adjoining room to jours ; and how long had his office been there ? 

Ans. I don't know of his transferring his business except to me at 
any time. His office was adjoining mine, in the same building and 
on the same floor. His office was there in 1844, perhaps earlier. 

112. Ques. When was the first arrangement you made with him 
to divide profits ? 

Ans. I never made any arrangement to divide profits except when 
he transferred to me his business. I agreed to allow him a certain 
per cent, on business done for his patrons. 1 do not recollect the 
per cent., or that I paid him anything. 

11.3. Ques. Did not Dr. Wells occupy the room next you until he 
transferred his business to you ? 



102 

Ans. It is my impression he did; cannot speak positively as to the 
time he transferred it. 

114. Ques. Who succeeded Dr. Wells in that office ? 

Ans. I do not recollect ; there was a barber in there, either before 
or after. 

115. Ques. Was the gas apparatus in Wells's room moved into 
your room before or after he went to Boston ? 

Ans. About the time he left. I think the barrel was the same he 
had. I had some of his ammonia. I do not recollect whether I had 
his retorts or not ; I used to break them and buy new ones. 

116. Ques. Do you know Truman Smith? 
Ans. I know the Hon. Truman Smith. 

117. When was he last in your office ? 

Ans. He has been there th;ee or four times ; the last time was 
some day last week. 

118. Ques. When was the first time he was there ? 
Ans. I think it was last week. 

119. Ques. Who was present .^ 
Ans. Geo. A. Tomlinson. 

120. Ques. Any body else; did any one come with him } 
Ans. I think no one came with him. 

121. Ques. Did you have an interview with him at any other 
place or places .'' 

Ans. I did, at Dr. Ellsworth's, about twenty minutes. 

122. Ques. What was the subject of conversation in your inter- 
views } 

Ans. At the first interview it was about Dr. Wells's discovery, at 
Dr. Ellsworth's, and another place ; at the other it was professional 
conversation about his own leelh. I had one or two other inter- 
views with Mr. Smith about Wells's discovery. 

123. Ques. At whose request? 

Ans. At the request of Joseph Wales. 

124. Ques. Has Mr. Smith any knowledge you intend to be in 
Washington this winter ? 

Ans. He has. 

125. Ques. Have you any knowledge he had any interview with 
any other person respecting Wells' discovery ; if so, please name 
them ? 

Ans. He had an interwiew with Mr. Colton. I don't remember 
any other person. 

126. Ques. Have you ever had any litigation with Dr. Morton ? 
Ans. I had a lawsuit with him. 

127. Ques. Have you since that suit been on speaking terms ? 
Ans. I do not recollect of meeting him, before to-day, since the 

lawsuit. 

128. Ques. How long have you known Dr. Morton, and what 
knowledge had you of his connexion with Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I knew him before he went to Boston with Dr. Wells. When 
I first knew him he was practising in Farmington. I had seen him 
as early as the spring or summer of 1842 ; might have been intro- 
duced at that time ; think Dr. Wells introduced me to him ; it might 
have been in 1841. I know Drs. Wells and Morton started to go to 
Boston ; do not recollect the date ; think it was in the fail or winter 
of 1842 or 1843. 



103 

129. Ques. State any personal knowledge you have that Dr. Mor- 
ton was a student of Dr. Wells ? 

Ans. I have no personal knowledge. ,^«^ p^g® 93, 

-1 .-./I /^ «T7 .1 ■! •, ' 1 ^ .^ n where heswears 

130. Ques. Was you a student in dentistry in 1842 ] to the fact. 
Ans. I was. 

131. Ques. Was Dr. Wells a man of general science 1 

Ans. I should say not. He was not a graduate of any college or 
medical school. 

132. Ques. Can you state, of your own personal knowledge, the 
cause of the dissolution of the partnership between Wells and Morton ? 

Ans. I cannot. 

133. Ques. Did you consider yourself competent to judge of Dr. 
Morton's qualifications as a dentist, previous to his going to Boston ? ^ 

Ans. I think I was. 

134. Ques. What were his qualifications as a dentist ? 
Ans. I don't know of any. 

135. Ques. Were you not a student while Dr. Morton was prac- 
tising in Farmington ? 

Ans. I was, a part of the time. 

136. Ques. Have you any personal knowledge of Dr. E. E. Marcy's 
cutting out a tumor, from the head of a patient, in 1844 or 1845, 
under the influence of ether, or any anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. I know nothing about it, except what Dr. Marcy told me. 1 
was not present at the operation, and did not see it done. 

137. Ques. When did Dr. Marcy tell you this ? 

Ans. About the time he claimed the operation was done ; cannot 
give the date ; that is my impression. 

138. Ques. Ave you a graduate of medicine? 
Ans. No, sir. 

139. Ques. Will you state whether the persons you have men- 
tioned, as charged on your books, as having teeth pulled under the 
influence of nitrous oxyd gas, had the operation performed, in every 
case, without pain ? 

Ans. They might, some of them, have had some little feeling ; 
some had none. I judge from their statements. 

140. Ques. Do you know of any other persons who administered See Answers 
the gas at this time in dental or surgical operations, from January ^Qg^^^^'Jog^^' 
23d, 1845, to November 2d, 1846 ? ' loi' 

Ans. I saw Wells administer it. I know of no other, except by 
hearsay. 

141. Ques. Will you state to whom you saw Dr. Wells administer 
the gas for dental or surgical purposes, between January 23d, 1845, 
and November 2d, 1846 ? 

Ans. I do not recollect the name of any one ; it is so long since. 

142. Ques. How can you say that it was between those dates? 
Ans. I know it by this : December 11th, 1844, 1 extracted a tooth 

for Dr. Wells, and in January following he went to Boston to exhibit 
his discovery there. On his return, he used the gas at different ^^ ^v°i7-^'^"^l*'r'! 
times from my apparatus, in the back office. From April 1st, 1845, bysame^'p-U^!; 
to September 1st, 1845, I think he intermitted his dental business. ^"^""auJ^b'; 
He gave me a card, and I was to do certain business which he had Cooiey, pp. t; 
engaged, and allow him a per centage; and 1 find I did allow him?,",. amrTy 
twenty.five dollars up to September 1st, 1845, at which time he le- ^]*j\J'''^«'P'^'"- 



104 

sumed his business ; and when he was in business, he was in the 
habit of g^iving this gas. 

143. Ques. Did you ever see Dr. Wells administer any of the gas 
that he took from your back office, to any person, for dental purposes, 
during this time ? 

Ans. I cannot positively say whether I was or was not present 
when he so used gas from my apparatus ; my impression is I did so 
see him use it. 

144. Ques. Are you willing to swear you saw him use it for dental 
purposes, during that time 1 

Ans. It is my conviction I did see him so use it, during that time. 

145. Ques. In what business was Dr. Wells engaged between 
0^ April and September, 1845? 

Ans. I do not remember. 

146. Ques. How long did he continue his business after he re- 
sumed it on the 8th of September, 1845? 

Ans. 1 cannot tell. 

147. Ques. Do you use nitrous oxyd gas in your dental operations 
at this time ? 

Seep 92. ^"'- ^^• 

148. Ques. How long since you have made general use of it for 
dental purposes ? 

(Xj= Ans. I have not used it since chloroform was introduced into prac- 
tice. 

Cross-examination. 

149. Ques. by Welch, attorney for Mrs. Wells. Was you a prac- 
tising dentist in Hartford during the years 1844, 1845, and 1846 ? 

Ans. I was. 

150. Ques. Where was your office ? 

Ans. I8O5 Main street — next door, and an adjoining room to that 
occupied by Dr. Horace Wells, on the same floor. 

151. Ques. Wai you intimately acquainted with the late Dr. Hor- 
ace Wells, and were you and he often back and forth in each other's 
offices ? 

Ans. I was intimately acquainted with him, and we were in the 
habit of being in each other's offices frequently. 

152. Ques. Did not Dr. Wells express to you his opinion that 
nitrous oxyd gas might be used to prevent pain under dental and sur- 
gical operations, prior to the time alluded to by you in your answers 
to the fifth and sixth interrogatories, when you, Cooley, Colton, and 
others, met in Dr. Wells's office ? 

Ans. He did. 

153. Ques. When and where did he express this opinion ? 

Ans. On the 10th of December, 1844, after Colton's lecture at 
Union Hall; on the evening of that day. He came into my office 
after the lecture, and expressed the opinion there. 

154. Ques. Was that the evening alluded to in your answer to the 
eighteenth interrogatory ? 

Ans. It is. 

155. Ques. Was S. A. Cooley present at this interview? 
Ans. No. 

156. Ques. Was there any allusion made to Cooley, during this 
interview ? 



105 

Ans. I think he alluded to Gooley and some others as having taken 
the gas, and/ome one having injured himself while under its influ- 
ence, and was not sensible of it at the time. 

157. Ques. Did Dr. Wells, at this time, intimate that the idea of 
using nitrous oxyd gas, to prevent pain, had been communicated to 
him by any one else ? 

Ans. He did not. 

158. Ques. Did you ever hear him intimate anything of the kind? 
Ans. I never did. 

159. Ques. Did not Dr. Wells always represent his discovery as 
the result of his own observations and experiments, without any sug- 
gestions from any person whatever? 

Ans. He always claimed the idea as being his own, and the result 
of his own observations. 

160. Ques. Did Dr. Wells, on the evening of the lOth of Decem- 
ber, 1844, suggest the experiment of having a tooth extracted while 
under the influence of nitrous oxyd gas ? 

Ans. He did. 

161. Ques. Did you accordingly extract a tooth for him, the next 
day, at his request? 

Ans. I did. 



United State- of America, 

District of Connecticut. 

I, Erastus Smith, a commissioner duly appointed by the Circuit 
Court of the United States, for the District of Connecticut in the 
Second Circuit, under and by virtue of the Acts of Congress, entitled 
" An Act for the more convenient taking of affidavits and bail in 
civil causes, depending in the Courts of the United States," passed 
February 20th, 1812, and the Act of Con'jress, entitled " An Act, in 
addition to an Act, entitled 'An Act for the more convenient taking 
of affidavits and bail in civil causes, depending in the Courts of the 
United States,'" passed March 1st, 1817, and the Act, entitled "An 
Act to establish the Judicial Courts of the United States," passed Sep- 
tember 24th, 1789, do hereby certify, that the reason for taking the 
foregoing disposition is, and the fact is, the witness is material and 
necessary in the cause in the caption of the said deposition named. 

/ further certify, that a notification of the time and place of taking 
the said deposition signed by me, was made out and served on Eliza- 
beth W. Wells and Charles Wells, to be present at the taking of the 
deposition, and to put interrogatories, if he or they might think fit. 



106 

I further certify, that on the 30th day of November, in the year 
of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, I was attended 
by counsel for Dr. Morton and Mrs. Wells and Charles Wells, until 
the 9th of December, 1852, and by the witness, who was of sound 
mind and lawful age, and the witness by me first carefully examined 
and cautioned, and sworn to testify the truth, the whole truth, and 
nothing but the truth, and the deposition was by me reduced to writing, 
in the presence of the witness, and from his statement, and after 
carefully reading the same to the witness. I have retained the said 
deposition in my possession for the purpose that the counsel of Mrs- 
Wells might fully cross-examine ; but said counsel and said Riggs 
neglect and refuse to be further present, and I am obliged to close 
the same without the witness signing the same. 

And I do further certify, that [ am not of counsel nor attorney for 
either of the parties in the said deposition and caption named, nor in 
any way interested in the event of the cause named in the said cap- 
tion. 

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, this 
eighteenth day of December, in the year of our Lord 
P 1 one thousand eight hundred and fifty-two, and of the 
■- ' 'J independence of the United States the seventy- 
seventh. 

ERA.STU>S SMITH. 
United States Commissioner, duly appointed by the 

Circuit Court of the United States for the 
District of Connecticut in the Second Circuit, 






The signers of the three following certificates, marhed A, B, and 
C, could not be found, and consequently could not be sum- 
moned before the U. S. Commissioner : 



I, the undersigned, resident of Hartford, Connecticut, do 
hereby testif}^, that, more than two years since, I submitted to 
the operation of having a tooth extracted while under the 
influence of nitrous oxyd gas. According to the best of my 
recollection, this was in the month of November, 1844. The 
gas was given, and the tooth extracted, by Horace Wells, 
dentist, of Hartford ; and I do further testify that the opera- 
tion was attended with no pain whatever. 

MYLO LEE. 



107 



State of Connecticut, , 



:uT, ) 



Hartford County, 

City of Hartford, March 26, 1847. 

Then personally appeared before me Mylo Lee, signer of 
the foregoing affidavit, and made solemn oath that the same 
was true. 

[l. s.] Given under my hand, and the seal of said city, 

A. M. COLLINS, Mayor, 



B. 

Hartford, March 26, 1847. 
I hereby testify that, more than two years prior to this date, 
on being informed that Horace Wells, dentist, of this city, 
had made a valuable discovery, by which means he could ex- 
tract teeth without pain to the patient, which consisted in 
the use of stimulating gas, or vapor, I inhaled the exhilerating 
gas, and, under its influence, had six extracted without the 
least pain. I would further state, that for more than eighteen 
months from the time I first submitted to this operation by 
the application of gas, I heard no other name mentioned as 
the discoverer, except that of the above-named Horace Wells. 

J. GAYLORD WELLS, 

184J Main street. 



State of Connecticut, 

Hartford County, 

City of Hartford, March 26, 1847. 

Then personally appeared before me J. Gaylord Wells, of 
this cit}^, who signed the within deposition, and made solemn 
oath that the same was true. 

[l. s.] Given under my hand, and the seal of said city, 

A. M. COLLINS, Mayor. 



108 



A little more than two years since, I learned that Dr. H. 
Wells, dentist, of this city, had made the discovery that by 
the use of an exhilerating gas or vapor, he could render the 
nervous system insensible to pain under severe surgical op- 
erations, and that he was using it in his practice with success. 
Having an opportunity to witness its effect upon several per- 
sons, during the operation of extracting teeth, I was so de- 
lighted and surprised with its manifest success, that I desired 
a trial of it upon myself The gas was accordingly admin- 
istered, and two curious teeth were extracted from my lower 
jaw, without the least suffering on my part ; though ordinarily, 
owing to the firmness with w^hich my teeth are fixed in my 
jaw, I suffer extreme pain from their extraction. 

WxM. H. BURLEIGH, 
Editor of the " Charter Oak:' 

Hartford, March 25, 1847. 



State of Connecticut, 

Hartford County, 

City of Hartford, March 26, 1847. 

Then personally appeared before me William H. Burleigh, 
signer of the foregoing affidavit, and made solemn affirmation 
that the same is true. 

[l. s.] Given under my hand, and the seal of said city, 

A. M. COLLINS, Mayor. 



Affidavit of V. S. Commissioner, setting forth the names of 
Mrs. Wells's witnesses who refused to testijy. 

I, Erastus Smith, of Hartford, depose and say, that as Com- 
missioner of the United States Circuit Court for the District 
of Connecticut, I, on the 19th day of November, 1852, issued 
a subpoena to Dr. H. Allen Grant, James B. Shultas, and W. 
S. White, among others, to appear before me, and testify in 
relation to the ether discovery, in the matter of the memorial 
of W. T. G. Morton ; and on the 4th of December I issued a 
like subpoena to Thomas S. Williams and Dr. John S. Butler. 

But neither of said persons did or would testify in relation 
to said matter, though said Grant and said White came to 
my office while others were being examined, but left without 
being sworn or offering to testify in the matter. 

ERASTUS SMITH. 



109 



l)lSTRlCT AND StATE OF CONNECTICUT, SS. 

Hartford, December 2^, 1852. 
Personally appeared Erastus Smith, who hath subscribed 
the within deposition, and made solem oath to the truth of 
the same before me. 

ANDREW T. JUDSON, 
[l. s.] Judge of the United States for the 

District of Connecticut. 



Affidavit of U. S. Marshal that Mrs. Wells^s witnesses were 
dnly notified. 

I, Chester Adams, of Hartford, of lawful age, depose and 
say — that I am a Deputy of the Marshal of the United States 
for the District of Connecticut, and that on the 19th, 21st, and 
22d of November, 1852, by virtue of a subpcena addressed to 
the Marshal by Erastus Smith, Esq., a Commissioner of the 
United States for the said District of Connecticut, I summoned 
Dr. H. Allen Grant, James B. Shultas, and William S. White, 
of Hartford, among others, to appear before said Smith, on 
the 22d of December, and testify in the matter of the ether 
discovery ; and tendered and paid each of them ^IjVt as fees 
of travel and attendance. 

And on the 5th day of December, 1852, by virtue of a like 
subpoena, I summoned Thomas S. Williams, but he refused to 
take the witness fee, and Dr. John S. Butler and William W. 
Ellsworth, in the same subpoena, I found sick, and unable to 
attend and testify, and did not summon them. 

CHESTER ADAMS. 



District op Connecticut, ) 
County of Hartford^ ) 

Hartford, December 28, 1852. 
Then personally appeared Chester Adams, and made sol- 
emn oath to the truth of the foregoing affidavit, by him sub- 
scribed before me. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
[l. s.] Commissioner of U. S. Circuit Court 

for the District of Connecticut. 



110 



This letter and another on page 130, is introduced to show 
Wells did not visit Paris to claim the ether discovery. 

Letter from the foreign correspondent of the New York Journal 
of Commerce, published in Boston Transcript March 20. 

Paris, March 1st, 1847. 

The all-absorbing topic of conversation in the saloons of 
Paris, and the all engrossing discussions in the learned and 
scientific societies here, as in most of Europe, is our " Ameri- 
can discovery" of performing surgical operations without 
pain. All the nations — I might almost say, all the individuals, 
are trying to claim the merit of the discovery. 

Numberless communications are published from persons 
who knew all these things long ago — twenty, thirty, and forty 
years since — yet, to the present moment, they have not suc- 
ceeded in wresting the honor of this discovery (the greatest 
ever given to man since the days of "Jenner,") from the 
western world. 

I have seen, in your paper of the 30th December last, a 
letter from Dr. Marcy, which gives the whole honor to Dr. 
Horace Wells, dentist of Hartford. I have also seen in the 
6th January, Dr. Jackson's reply, and the rejoinder of Dr. 
Marcy, in the 8th. In the "Boston Medical and Surgical 
Dr. Ells- Journal" I see a letter which gives the discovery to Dr. Wells. 
mmStion?™' These are things which I hope you will settle fairly on your 
side of the water, and let "Caesar have the things which are 

SeeEllsworth, Q^Sar's." 

Imagine to yourselves, Messrs. Editors, a man to have made 
this more than brilliant discovery, visting Europe without 
bringing with him the proofs. 

Very truly yours, 

BREWSTER. 



Statement No. 4, of Dr. Marcy. 

I have been requested, by a relative of the late Dr. Horace 
Wells, to repeat again the facts relating to my connexions with 
the discovery of the anaesthetic properties of nitrous oxyd gas 
and the vapor of sulphuric ether. This I do with great plea- 
sure, trusting that justice will finally be done to the memory 
of Dr. Wells, the undoubted discoverer of anaesthetic agents 
in surgical operations. 



Ill 

I hereby certify and declare, that during the month of Oc- 
tober. 1844,1 witnessed the extraction of a tooth from the 
person of F. C. Goodrich, Esq., of this city, by Dr. Horace 
Wells, after nitrous oxyd gas had been inhaled, and without 
the slightest consciousness of pain on the part of the gentle- 
man operated upon. Not only was the extraction accomplished 
without pain, but the inhalation of the gas was effected with- 
out any of those indications of excitement, or attempts at 
muscular exertion, which so commonly obtain when the gas 
is administered without a definite object, or previous mental 
preparation. 

By this experiment, two important, and to myself, entirely 
new facts, were demonstrated: 1st, that the body could be 
rendered insensible to pain, by the inhalation of a gas or va- 
por, capable of producing certain effects upon the organism ; 
and 2d, when such agents were administered to a sufficient 
extent, for a definite object, and with a suitable impression 
being previously produced upon the mind, that no unusual 
mental excitement, or attempts at physical effort, would follow 
the inhalation. 

Witnessing these wonderful phenomena— these new and 
astounding facts — the idea at once occurred to me, whether 
there were not other substances analogous in effect to the 
gas, and which might be employed with more convenience, 
and with equal efficacy and safety. Knowing that the inha- 
lation of sulphuric ether vapor gave rise to precisely the same 
effects as those of the gas, from numerous former trials with 
both these substances, I suggested to Dr. Wells the employ- 
ment of the vapor of rectified sulphuric ether, at the same 
time detailing to him its ordinary effects upon the economy, 
and the method of preparing the article for use. Our first 
impression was that it possessed all the anaesthetic properties 
of the nitrous oxyd — was equally safe, and could be prepared 
w^th less trouble ; thus affording an article which was not 
expensive, and could always be kept at hand. At the same >. See pnbiica- 
time I told Dr. Wells that I would prepare some ether, and iS, p. iS," 
furnish him some of it to administer, and also make a trial iJJ; ^;herf the 
with it myself, in a surgical case which I expected to operate ^^"^^ j^^joJ.^j^^^J- 
tipon in a few days. Not long after this conversation, (to that the proper- 
which allusion is made by Mr. Goodrich in his affidavit,) I Jlfere^kcove?- 
administered the vapor of rectified sulphuric ether, in my of- been'^^su^-estcd 
fice, to the young man above alluded to, and after he hadtovveiisr 
been rendered insensible to pain, cut from his head an encys- 
ted tumor, of about the size of an English walnut. The ope- 
ration w^as entirely unattended with pain, and demonstrated 
to Dr. Wells and myself, in the most conclusive manner, the 
anaesthetic properties of ether vapor. Very little was thought 
of this particular case, at that time, by Dr. Wells or m}^self, 
as neither we or Drs. Riggs, Ellsworth, &c., had entertained 
the slightest doubt of the efficacy of ether vapor, since the 



112 

first exhibition of the gas, and especiall}^ after the discussion 
above referred to, in Dr. Wells's office, in the presence of Mr. 
Goodrich. But the point which Dr. Wells now wished me to 
determine was, whether this vapor was as safe as the gas. 
He informed me that Dr. Riggs had told him that he had in- 
haled both of these substances, when in Washington College, 
and that it was his impression, from the effects of the two 
agents upon himself and others, as well as from the view^s 
inculcated by Professor Rogers, in his lectures upon these 
substances before the class, that the inhalation of the ether 
vapor was more dangerous than that of the nitrous oxyd gas. 
Accordingly, at the urgent request of Dr. Wells, I read what 
could readily be procured in relation to both articles, and 

(O" formed the opinion that the constituents of the gas were more 
nearly allied to the atmosphoric air, than were those of ether 
vapor — that the former was more agreeable and easy to in- 
hale than the latter, and upon the whole, was more safe and 
equally efficacious as an anaesthetic agent. Numerous expe- 

0:j"riments made with the gas, by Drs. Ellsworth, Beresford, 
Riggs, Terry, Wells, and myself, since that period, both in 
Seep. 114. large and small operations, fully confirm the opinion I then 
expressed ; and we can only say to those who have so arbi- 
trarily, and, we may add, impertinently, slighted and under- 
rated the properties of this gas, that they have never made 
trial of this substance, and therefore are incompetent to ex- 
press an opinion upon the respective merits of these substan- 
ces. 

If, then, it be asked why Dr. Wells, Riggs, and myself, did 
not persist in the use of ether vapor, I reply, for the same 

0:j" reasons that are now entertained by those who have used the 
gas in this city, viz : the superior safety, ease of administra- 
tion, and equal efficacy of the latter. 

I also further declare, that I was aware of the fact of Dr. 
Wells's visit to Boston, in 1844, for the purpose of communi- 
cating his discovery to the faculty of that cit}^ I also had 
an interview with Dr. Wells, soon after his return from Bos- 
ton, when he informed me that he had made known to Dr. C. 
T. Jackson, and Mr. Morton, the anaesthetic properties of the 
nitrous oxyd gas, the ether vapor, and other analagous sub- 
stances. He also informed me that he had made an imperfect 
trial with the gas, before Dr. Warren's class, but that the ex- 
periment was not satisfactory, on account of the patient's 
getting an insufficient quantity of the gas. He further in- 
formed me that his discovery, and his whole idea respecting 
anaesthetic agents, was ridiculed by Dr. Jackson, and other 
medical men of Boston, but that his former pupil, Morton, 
^Seesame«%-g^rj^l lowed this ridiculous idea greedily, and kept it down un- 

ness, p. 114, , , , , . -itet - • • i r- r> 

that Morton til 1846, whcu hc cjectcd it at Wasnmgton, in the lorm oi a 
tow i\°''^ *^^^'' patented compound— mark the word — compound, called Le- 
theon. 

E. E. MARCY. 



118 



State of Connecticut , 

ss. 



:l 



Hartford county. 

Hartford, December 1st., 1849. 
• Personally appeared Dr. E. E. Marcy, of this town, and 
made solemn oath to the truth of the foregoing affidavit by 
him subscribed. Before me, 

BENNING MANN, Justice of Peace. 



Statement J No 1, of Dr. Marcy, 

For the Journal of Commerce, December 30, 1846. 
SULPHURIC ETHER, &c., IN SURGICAL OPERATIONS. 

Messrs. Editors : A number of articles recently made their 
appearance in the Medical and other journals of Boston, in 
relation to a discovery purporting to have been made by Dr. 
Jackson, or a Mr. Morton of that city. We learn also that a 
"patenf^ has been procured upon the pretended discovery, and 
that it is now being hawked about as a nostrum. We refer 
to the use of the sulphuric ether in obviating the pain of sur- 
gical operations. 

Justice to the real discoverers of this 'agent, demands that 
a statement of the facts in the case should be laid before the 
public, in order that a correct opinion may be formed, and the 
credit given where it belongs. 

In the month of October, 1844, a dentist of Hartford, Con- 
necticut, Horace Wells, Esq., first made use of inhalations of 
the nitrous oxyd gas, in extracting teeth. The results of his 
experiments, were, that teeth could be extracted without the 
slightest consciousness of pain to the individual operated 
upon. During the same month, the writer of the present 
article, while witnessing the experiments of the gas, suggested 
to Mr. Wells the use of sulphuric ether as a substitute for the 
8 



114 

nitrous oxyd gas. Being familiar with the effects of both of 
these agents, and knowing that other operations upon the 
system were analogous, I first urged upon him the use of the 
sulphuric ether, as being equally efficacious, and less trouble- 
O^some to prepare. Upon reflection and more full discussion of 
See actual ex- t}^g matter, I adviscd Mr. Wells to abandon the use of the 

periment after- i/-»i« mi ii tit 

wards preteud- ethcr and confine himself to the exhilarating gas. Bly reasons 
* ''^' * for this advice were: 1st, The effects of the latter continue 
for a greater length of time upon the system, and thus enable 
the operator to complete his operation with more facility^ 
and 2d, There seemed to me to be less danger of injurious 
consequences upon the brain and lungs, than with the sul- 
phuric ether. 

Some two months after the above circumstance transpired, 

Mr. Wells visited Boston and had interviews with a Mr. 

Morton (dentist) and Dr. Charles T. Jackson ; to both of v/hom 

he communicated the discoveries and facts above named, 

m^^lailior'-^^ ^^^ informed by Mr. Wells that both of these gentlemen 

ton' swallowed Qxpressed the greatest surprise and incredulity at his state- 

ucrree i y. j^^jjf. — y)y. Jacksou alleging that he could not conceive how 

Compare this an "exhilarating substance could produce such an effect." 

which he had Mr. Wells further informed Dr. Jackson that he was sure,, 

witnessed. ffom facts wliich he had witnessed, ^'that any a^ent which 

should stimulate the nervous system up to a given point, would 

render the body incapable of feeling pain from an ordinary 

surgical operation. 

I also take the liberty of observing that about two years 

since, I made a communication to Prof. Revere, of this city, 

upon this subject, requesting him to make it known to Prof. 

Pattison, in order that he might test the thing. Whether 

any use was ever made of it, by either of these gentlemen, I 

am unable to sa5\ That the subject was broached to them, 

however, previous to any knowledge acquired on experiments 

made by Dr. Jackson or Mr. Morton, of Boston, we entertain 

no doubt. 

See this wit- My own opinion in regard to the use of the nitrous oxyd gas, 

con'sidel^tiiis^n ^^^ sulphurw ether, or any other stimulant, which acts upon the 

connection withc^/^jTeTTi in such tt manner as to render the body insensible to ex- 

the value or -^ . . • • 7 • 7 77 /• 17 

Wells's discov temal impressions, is, that it is decidedly unsaje, and that in no 

"^* given case can we be certain that it will not cause congestion of 

of the hrain or lungs. I have known the use of both the first 

named articles to give rise to temporary congestion of the brain 

„, . , and insanity. 

Tkis reduces * 1 "r> . , • , ., . c • 

itself to mes- Auothcr fact m relation to the exhilarating gas, &c., is 
riimS^'condV worthy of notice. Under orrlinary circumstances, the person 
expennJenihad ^"^^o luhales thc gas has uo coutrol over himself; — but if, 
been made^^ by prevlous to his taking thc gas, hc fixes his mind strongly upon 
in his' knowi-some glvcu purpose, and exercises his will steadily, in order 
effbii?h'^'°!he to effect and carry out this purpose, he will, in nearly every 
purely physical j^jg^-^jj^g l3g ^ble to contfol hlmsclf and remain quiet. Thus 

agency in qaes- » ^ 

tioa. 



115 

it is, that a man will inhale the gas, and sit statue-like during r-Q 
the performance of an operation. This fact may seem strange, 
but we hare tested it in many instances, and know that it can, 
as a general thing, be relied upon. 

In regard to any opiates or other articles which may have 
been added to this sulphuric ether, they are, in my opinion, 
entirely useless and superfluous. It is the ether, and that 
alone, which produces the effect. 

In conclusion we would say, that for the performance of r^ 
operations, the nitrous oxyd gas will be found more valuable 
than any other agent. 

E. E. MARCY, M. D., 

356 Broadway, New York 



This letter of Dr. Jackson^'s is simply introduced to show 
the connection between the one preceding and following it. 

From the New York Journal of Commerce, January 6, 1847i. 

Boston, January 4, 1847. 

To THE Editors of the Journal ot' Commerce— Cren^/e?7ien .* 
A friend has just sent me a slip from your paper of the 30th 
ult., which requires my notice. It is a letter from E. E. Marcy, 
M. D., of New York, concerning the discovery of the appli- 
cation of inhalation of vapor of sulphuric ether, for preven- 
tion of pain during surgical operations. 

I regret that Dr. Marcy i^hould have been led into error, as 
he evidently has been. I do not know him, nor does he know 
me, or he would never have made the charges against me that 
appeared in his communication. I trust that he will make 
the proper corrections when he learns the facts in the case. 
He has stated that Mr. Horace Wells, of Hartford, commu- 
nicated to me a discovery which I claim to have made, viz : 
that inhalation of vapor of sulphuric ether will produce in- 
sensibility to pain, in surgical operations. He intermingles 
in his discussion of the subject, the application of " nitrous 
oxyd" or " exhilarating gas," which I have nothing to do with, 
and which has a directly opposite effect to the vapor of highly 
rectified sulphuric ether, and seems to regard the discovery 
alleged to have been made by Mr. Wells, that exhilarating 
gas would produce insensibility to pain, as identical with that 
claimed by me. I wish distinctly to state that Mr. Wells 



116 

never commnnicated to me a word about the use of etbef 
vapor, nor did I know that he ever pretended to have made 
any discovery with regard to it. 

I understood that he proposed and made some experiments 
as to extraction of teeth from patients during their excite- 
ment by "nitrous oxyd or exhilarating gas/' but I never saw 
any of his experiments, and merely heard that they had 
proved unsuccessful, as I suppose they must have been, since 
I have never known of any attempt to repeat them. 

I hope Dr. Marcy will allow me also to disclaim the words 
he attributes to me, and has marked by quotation points ; for 
I never made use of those expressions, nor did Mr. Wells 
state in my presence the words attributed to him. 

I would also beg leave to call his attention to the fact that 
the effect of highly rectified ether vapor, when inhaled in the' 
manner employed in this city, does not act as an excitant, but 
as a sedative of a most decided character, diminishing the 
pulsation of the arteries, and producing a deep sleep or stupor ; 
effects directly opposite to those resulting from inhalation of 
exhilarating gas. 

The use of common sulphuric ether (which contains alcohol,) 
may have led Dr. Marcy to mistake the character of the pre-- 
tended discovery. 

Respectfully, your obedient servant, 

CHARLES T. JACKSON, M. D. 



Statement No, 2, of Dr. Marcy^s. 

For the Journal of Commerce^ Jan, 8, 1847. 
Messrs. Editors : My attention has been called to a com-^ 
munication in your journal of the 6th instant, from Charles 
T. Jackson, M. D., of Boston, in reply to a previous article of 
mine concerning the use of ether vapor, for the prevention of 
pain during surgical operations. In this communication Dr. 
J. denies that he has ever received any information from Mr. 
Wells, in regard to the use of this vapor, and also disclaims 
another statement which was attributed to him. Now we 
shall simply add, in regard to this matter, that we received 
the statements alluded to from Mr. Wells himself, about two 
weeks since, and we believed them, for the following reasons ; 



See above, 

etna? ex- 



11? 

1st, The use of the vapor of rectified sulphuric ether was Bntnocaieap- 
suggested to Mr. Wells more than two j^ears ago. From o7 ether pWoMo 
experiments and facts which came under his observation M^^^l^i^^-'^^'^^^ 
this time, he became fully aware of its properties in prevent- 
ing pain during surgical operations, and the comparative 
merits of this article and the nitrous oxyd gas were often 
discussed. It was through my advice that he continued the 
use of the gas instead of the ether vapors. 

Soon after these discoveries, Mr. Wells visited Boston for 
the avowed purpose of making them known in that city, and 
upon his return he asserted that he had communicated with 
Dr. Jackson and Mr. Morton upon the subject, and received 
no encouragement. If the ether was not alluded to in any 
of these interviews, we think it truly singular, knowing as we 
do, that Mr. W. was at this time aware of its properties. 

Be this, however, as it may, one fact is incontrovertible, viz : ^J^^ 
that inhalation of the vapor of the rectified sulphuric ether penmems aftejjr 
for preventing the pain of surgical operations, was suggested S' ^ '"^'^"' 
to Mr, Wells, by the writer of this article, more than two years 
since. If Dr. Jackson suggested the use of it previous to that 
time, he is the discoverer ; if he did not, then he has no claim 
to the discovery. 

In regard to the experiments performed by Mr. Wells, with 
the gas, both previous and subsequent to his visit to Boston, 
we assure Dr. J. that they were numerous and entirely satis- see wdiss 
lactor},. 119 ^^^ ^„^. 

Dr. J. asserts that there is no analogy between the effects '^J"- Pt^ -'^ '- 
of exhilarating gas and the vapor — that the former is a stimu- 
lant^ while the latter is a sedative- — that the vapor diminishes 
the pulsation of the arteries, and produces stupor, while the 
gas has an opposite effect. Upon this point, we beg leave to 
differ with the doctor, and in support of our views, we quote 
from an article in the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal 
of December 9th, by John C. Warren, M. D. 

"October 18th, an operation was done by Dr. Hay ward on 
a tumor of the arm in a female patient at the hospital. The 
respiration of the gas was continued during the whole of the 
operation. There was no exhibition of pain, excepting some 
occasional groans during its last stage, which she subse- 
quently stated to have arisen from a disagreeable dream. 
Noticing the pulse, in this patient, before and after the opera- 
tion, I found it to have risen from 80 to 120." Dr. Warren 
further observes, on page 378, " that the action of the heart is 
remarkably accelerated, in some cases, but not in all.'''' 

The first effect of the vapor is undoubtedly stimulating; but 
if the inhalations are continued for several minutes, the patient 
is reduced to a state very similar to a man who is thoroughly 
intoxicated. The first effect of the nitrous oxyd gas is also 
stimulating; but continue the inhalations for a sufficient 
length of time, and the same stupor occurs which results from 



118 

the use of the ether. Both of these substances act directly, 
and in a similar manner upon the cerebral system, and the 
consequent insensibility is proportionate to the degree of cere- 
see Riggs. bral affection. 
ShelT'u De'iJ! ^^^ conclusion, we again repeat, — 1st, The discovery of the 
inhalation of a gas which would prevent pain during surgical 
operations, was first made hy Mr. Wells, of Hartford, Con- 
necticut, in October, 1844. 
See pre^^oas 2nd, That thc usc of the vapor of sulphuric ether was sug- 
tetwlX'^^S g^sted to him a short time afterwards, and that its properties, 
tended, p. 111. as Vv^ell as those of the gas, were at that time fully discussed 
and appreciated. 

3d, Simple justice should induce the public to give the 
credit of these discoveries to the men who first made known 
he^daTrasto^be^i'id dcmoustratcd to the world that the inhalation of a gase- 
To.Ht discomerar. Q^g substauce would rcuder the body insensible to the pain of 
surgical operations ; for in all probabilit}^ had Mr. Wells not 
made his discovery, neither myself nor any other person would 
ever have thought of using other vapor for the same purpose. 

Respectfully yours, 

E. E. MARCY, M. D. 
New York, January 7thj 1847, 



Dr, WelWs seccmd publication . 

This appears in Galignani's Messenger, which was repub- 
lished in the Boston Atlas, April 2. 

Taris, February 17, 1847. 
Sir : As you have recently published an extract from the 
Avorfh^^ c?m- Boston Mcdlcal and Surgical Journal, which reconizes me as 
ingn.catiou. the dlscovcrer of the happy effects produced by the inhalation 
of exhilarating gas or vapor for the performance of surgical 
operations, I will now offer some suggestions in reference to 
this subject. Reasoning from analogy, I was led to believe 
that surgical operations might be performed without pain, by 
the fact that an individual, when much excited from ordinary 
causes, may receive severe wounds without manifesting the 
least pain ; as, for instance, the man who is engaged in com- 
bat may have a limb severed from his body, after which he 
testifies that it was attended with no pain at the time ; and 



119 

so the man who is intoxicated with spirituous liquor may be see his state- 
treated severely without his manifesting pain, and his frame Siling beVoJe 
seems in this state to be more tenacious of life than under ^jJ^VmoS 
ordinary circumstances. By these facts I was led to inquire ^^^fo^V^'u'' 

J nn 1 I'll* r> (since when he 

if the same result would not follow by the inhalation oi some had crossed ti.e 
exhilarating gas, the effects of which would pass off imme-S" *enga?ed 
diately, leaving the system none the worse for its use. I p1ctu?eo wK 
accordins'ly procured some nitrous oxyd gas, resolving to t^'e whole num- 

- ,•^0'^ . AC- ^ -y ' ^ 1 ber claimed was 

make the first experiment on myself, by having a tooth ex- but 12 or 15, & 
tracted, which was done without any painful sensations. 1 ^ tlT^uJ^^'if 
then performed the same operation for twelve or fifteen others, ®'^^®'^- 
with the like results; this was in November, 1844. Being a 
resident of Hartford, Connecticut, (U. S.,) I proceeded to 
Boston the following month, (December,) in order to present 
my discovery to the medical faculty — first making it known 
to Drs. Warren, Hayward, Jackson and Morton, the two last 
of whom subsequently published the same, without mention 
of our conference. Since this discovery was first made I have 
administered nitrous oxyd gas and the vapor of ether to about 
fifty patients, my operations having been limited to this small 
number in consequence of a protracted illness which imme- 
diately ensued on my return home from Boston, in January, 
1845. Much depends on the state of mind of the patient 
during the inhalation of gas or vapor. If the individual takes 
it with a determination to submit to a surgical operation, he 
has no disposition to exert the muscular system; whereas, ^j^'j^f^'j^*'^*" 
under other circumstances, it seems impossible to restrain 103, auesriba! 
him from over exertion ; he becomes perfectly uncontrollable. 
It is well to instruct all patients of this fact before the inha- 
lation takes place. The temperament and physical condition 
of the patient should be well marked before administering the 
vapor of ether ; persons whose lungs are much affected should 
not be permitted to inhale this vapor, as serious injuries have 
resulted from it in such cases. Nitrous oxyd gas, or protoxyd 
of nitrogen, is much less liable to do injur}^ and is more agree- 
able to inhale, producing at the same time equal insensibility 
to all painful sensations. It may be taken without the least 
inconvenience by those who become choked, almost to stran- 
gulation, with ether ; in fact, I have never seen or heard of a 
single instance where this gas has proved in the least detri- 
mental. This discovery does not consist in the use of any 
one specified gas or vapor ; for anything which causes a cer- 
tain degree of nervous excitement is all that is requisite to 
produce insensibility to pain; consequently, the only ques- Ti>i. proves 

:• ,1 I 1 • 1 • I I •! . . t 1.. , that he had not 

tion to be settled is, which exhilarating agent is least likely used ether, be- 
to injure the system. The less atmospheric air admitted intOha"4^ produced 
the lungs with, any gas or vapor, the better— the more satis-'J^'f \J,^ %'2.; 
factory will be the result of the operation. Those who have ^^''•^"^^^'^ suffix- 
been accustomed to use much intoxicating beverage cannot form n lurS 
be easily affected in this manner. With cases of dislocated oEZS 

air. 



^ 120 

joints, the exhilarating gas operates like a charm ; all the 
muscles become relaxed, and but a very little effort will serve 
to replace the limb in its socket, and v/hile the operation is 
being performed the muscles do not contract as when in the 
natural state, but are as easily managed as those of a corpse. 
Allow me to add that I have had no opportunity of reading 
any of the French professional reports or discussions on this 
subject. I shall remain in Paris until the 27th inst., and in 
the interval I should be pleased to impart such information as 
I may have acquired by a close observation of the various 
phenomena connected with this interesting subject. 

HORACE WELLS. 



This letter is introduced to show that Wells admitted the 
correspondence on pages 8 and 9. 

To the Editor of the Boston Post. 

Hartford, April 19, 1847. 

I have just seen a long article in your paper of the 7th 
inst., signed E. W., which I will answer in one word. The 
letter which is there introduced with my signature was writ- 
ten in answer to one which I received from Dr. Morton, who 
represented to me that he had discovered a "compound," the 
effects of which, as described by him, entirely eclipsed those 
produced by nitrous oxyd gas, or sulphurate ether, he stating 
that his compound would invariably produce a sound sleep, 
the length of which was wholly optional with the operator; 
that he had not made a single failure, in one hundred and 
sixty cases, &c., &c. He also stated that he had obtained a 
patent for this compound. I accordingly started for Boston 
to learn more of this improvement on my discovery, with 
which I had made him acquainted long before. 

While at his office I saw the (so called) compound admin- 
istered to a patient; it apparently had the same effect as the 
gas, which I had many times administered for the same pur- 
pose. Before I left for home, the gas was given to several 
other patients, with but partial success — at least, so said the 
patients with whom I conversed. I then inquired about his 
patent, and foiind, to my surprise, that he had not obtained 
one, nor even made an application for one ; this being done at a 
subsequent period, as the date of his specifications and patent 
clearly show. Respecting the interview which E. W. had 
with the Hon. James Dixon at Washington, I am informed 
by Mr. Dixon that the statement of E. W. in the article 
referred to, is a gross misrepresentation of the truth, and if 
necessary, he will sign a certificate to that effect. 

Respectfully, 

HORACE WELLS. 



121 



Deposition of Horace Cornwall, Esq., touching the taJdng of 
certain testimony by Dr. Ellsworth, agent of Mrs. Wells, 
and the refusal to permit Dr. Morton's attorney to he present^ 
or to Know the names of witnesses, <^c. 

I, Horace Cornwall, of Hartford, of lawful age, depose and 
say : That I am attorne}^ and counsellor at law, and that on 
the 15th day of November, 1852, in behalf of Dr. Wm. T. G. 
Morton, of Boston, caused a notice to be served upon Mrs. 
Elizabeth W. Wells, of Hartford, widow of the late Dr. Horace 
Wells, by Gen. A. M. Waterman, sheriff of Hartford county, 
with reference to taking testimony in the matter of the ether 
discovery. As I was desirous of giving Mrs. Wells an oppor- 
tunity to be ready and present at the taking of testimony, I 
sought General Waterman, on his return from serving the 
notice, to see what reply she made. General Waterman in- 
formed me that Mrs. Wells said she was all ready, except that 
her counsel, Truman Smith, was not here. From other sources 
I learned that Mr. Smith was at Letchfield, thirty miles dis- 
tant from Hartford ; and accordingl}^, on the 19th of Novem- 
ber, 1852, I caused a notice to be issued by Erastus Smith, 
Esq., a commissioner of the United States for the district of 
Connecticut, which I^ hereto annex, and it is marked (A.) 

In pursuance of said notice, on the 22d of November, the 
Hon. Truman Smith having arrived in town, I began the 
taking of depositions before the commissioner, and counsel for 
Mrs. Wells were present, and informed many of the witnesses 
that they were not bound to appear before the commissioner 
or testify. Many of them, however, did testify, although not 
all. I recollect at the time this statement was made, on the 
morning of November 22d, by the counsel of Mrs. Wells, Dr. 
H. Allen Grant had just come into the room, and that he re- 
marked, in reply, that he should leave, if that was the case. 
He did leave, and, although he was summoned, and received 
the witness fee, and was sent for several times, he would not 
appear or testify. I was much delayed and hindered in 
taking testimony, waiting to accommodate the witnesses and 
the counsel for Mrs. Wells. 

Between the 22d of November and the 10th of December I 
was repeatedly informed by Dr. Ellsworth that they would 
give me the same opportunity to be present and examine their 
witnesses that I had given them. 

On the 10th of December instant, about 12 o'clock, noon, 
I received a notice, which is hereto annexed, marked (B,) 
which is the only notice in any form I ever received from Mrs. 
Wells or her counsel, with regard to taking testimony. 



122 

On the afternoon of December lOth I was present at the 
office of H. K. W. Welch, at 2j o'clock, and remained till 
about 4 o'clock, and no witness had yet appeared. I was 
then informed b}- Dr. Ellsworth that it was doubtful (it was 
so late) whether any witness came. I then went to my office, 
and returned in about fifteen minutes to the office of Welch ; 
and, on entering, I found H. L. Rider, Esq., (the person men- 
tioned in the notice before whom depositions were to be 
taken, and who had not previously, while I was in, been pres- 
ent,) taking the testim.ony of Walter S. Williams; and H. K. 
W. Welch and Dr. Ellsworth were examining him. After 
they had closed, I cross-examined him. Williams's deposition 
was finished about 6 o'clock in the evening. Being undc^r a 
previous engagement to attend the trial of a cause out of 
town the next day, (Saturday,} I suggested it to the counsel 
for IMrs. Wells, and was informed by Mr. Welch that he was 
desirous of going to Boston soon ; and thereupon we agreed 
that he should go next daj-, (Saturdaj^, the 11th December,) 
and that no depositions should be taken on either side on Sat- 
urday, the 11th, nor on Monday, the 13th December, until the 
return of both myself and ]Mr. Welch. I returned on Satur- 
day evening, but took no depositions until after the return of 
Mr. Welch. On Monday morning I went to the office of H. 
K. W. Welch to see whether he had returned, and found he 
had not. After the arrival of the train from Boston, about 
noon, I went again, and found he had not yet returned. About 
S o'clock, p. m., thinking Welch might have stopped at Spring- 
field, and come from there on a way train, I again went to 
his office to see if he had returned ; and if so, to notify him to 
cross-examine Dr. Riggs, whose deposition was unfinished 
before Commissioner Smith that evening. I learned from his 
brother, at his office, that he had not arrived. At this time, 
on entering Welch's office, I found H. L. Rider, Dr. Ellsworth, 
E. W. Parsons, and a young man I subsequently learned was 
Franklin V. Slocum. H. L. Rider and Dr. Ellsworth were 
engaged in taking the deposition of E. W. Parsons. I asked 
them why they were taking testimony in violation of the 
agreement that had been made. Dr. Ellsworth said he was 

O:j'not a lawyer, and did not consider he was bound by any such 
agreement. While Dr. Ellsworth was replying to me, Rider 
and the witness left the room. Dr. Ellsworth and myself 
continued some conversation about the unfair course he was 
taking, and in about ten minutes I left the room, and went 
directly to the office of H. L. Rider, which is in the same 
building and on the same floor with that of Welch, and Dr. 
Ellsworth immediately followed me into Rider's office. When 
I got in there, I found Rider and F. V. Slocum, who had just 

G3" signed and made oath to a deposition which, I understand, 
had been partly taken on Saturday before. I asked of Rider, 
the magistrate, the privilege, as the witness was yet present, 
of cross-examining him and securing his deposition. Rider 



12a 

said he would not object, if Dr. Ellsworth did not. Dr. Ells- j;^ 
worth said he did object, and I was not permitted to see his 
deposition or examine him. I then asked the magistrate if 
he had been taking depositions on Saturday. He replied that 
he had. I asked at whose suggestion, and he said at Dr. 
Ellsworth's. I then again spoke of the agreement, and the 
unfair course they were taking. Rider said he knew nothing -.^ 
of the agreement, and should certify that I was notified, and 
not present. I told him that would be wrong. 

I subsequently learned that Rider and Ellsworth were taking -C^ 
depositions all day on Saturday. 

I remained at Rider's office for a half hour or more. Tasked 
the magistrate (Rider) to see the depositions they had taken. 
Dr. Ellsworth said to Rider "do not show them ;" and, turning -p) 
to me, said "you cannot see them." I then asked the names of 
the persons they had examined. Dr. Ellsworth said they j-q 
should not give them to me. I then told Dr. Ellsworth that 
I had only made these requests on the ground of his promise 
to me, and that they were pursuing a very unfair course ; and 
that if the testimony they were getting was the truth, I did r-Q 
not see how he could object to my crass-examining the wit- 
nesses. 

I then asked both Rider and Ellsworth if they were going 
to take any other depositions on that day,, (Monday.) Dr. 
Ellsworth said they probably should. I said to him that then 
I wish to be present, and cross-examine them, that no errone- 
ous impression may be made by their testimony ; that all I 
sought was the exact truth in the matter, which, if arrived at, 
I had no reason to fear for the just rights of Dr. Morton ; and 
that, as I was there, would wait till their witnesses came in. -C^ 
Dr. Ellsworth replied that I could not be permitted to exam- ^^ 
ine their witnesses, and said he would not examine any more 
there that day, and immediately left the office. While he 
was going out I requested him not to stop the witnesses, but 
let them come and be examined there — fairly. Dr. Ellsworth 
made an indistinct reply, which I cannot state, and passed on ; 
and in a few minutes no witness came in, and I left. On the 
next day, (Tuesday,) in the morning, I went to the office of 
Welch to see if they were taking depositions there, and found 
they were not. Soon after entering the room Dr. Ellsworth 
appeared at the door, and, seeing me, withdrew. I passed 
immediately to the door to speak to him, and as I opened the 
door 1 heard the door of Rider's office, which is in the same 
hall, as I supposed, close to. I passed immediately to the 
door, (seeing Dr. Ellsworth nowhere, and knowing he could 
not get down the stairs,) and rapped. The key was on the 
inside, and the door was locked, and they did not let me in. 
I went to my office, and returned in about fifteen or twenty 
minutes, and found Rider's office not locked, and went in. 
Found no person there but Rider, the magistrate, and the key 



124 

on the inside of the door. I asked him if Dr. Ellsworth had 
been there. He said yes. I asked him if they had been 
taking testimony there that morning. He said they had. I 

^ asked him why they locked me out. He said because Dr. 
Ellsworth directed it. I then asked him again to inform me 
what depositions they had taken, and to let me see them. He 
said Dr. Ellsworth had requested him not to tell me or show 
me the depositions. 

Accordingly Rider refused to show them or tell me who 
the witnesses were. I asked if he was going to take any more 
testimony that day, (Tuesday.) He said he supposed so. I 
told him I should be in my office all day, and wished him to 

Q^let me know when he took any depositions. He said Dr. 
Ellsworth would not agree to that, if he would, he would 
send me word. The entrance to my office is about twenty or 
thirty feet from the office of Rider & Welch. I received no 
notice from him, and was not permitted to be present after. 

Finding that they were determined that I should not be 
present or cross-examine any of their witnesses, I undertook 
to ascertain who they w^ere examining, and informed Dr. 
Ellsworth that I should ascertain who they were, if I could, 
and see what they knew in relation to the matter. Dr. Ells- 
worth said I might, if I could, find who they were, but he 

QCj" thought I would have some trouble. This, I think, was on 
Wednesday, the 15th December. After this the witnesses 
were taken privately and examined in different places in the 
city, as I understand and have since learned ; and Rider and 
Ellsworth and Welch v/ent to the residence of some of the 
witnesses, and took their testimony, and, as I have reason to 
believe, so that I should not learn who they were. They have 
utterly refused me the right to be present and examine any 
of their witnesses, except the first, on the J 0th of December, 
W. S. Williams. 

There were several witnesses that I desired to take their 
testimony, particularly N. M. Waterman, E. E. Crofot, Den- 
tist, and S. R. Slocum, who they refused me the right to cross- 
examine ; but who I did not summon, because, calling on them 
to see when I should summon to suit their business conveni- 
ence, they informed me that it was of no use to summon them, 

Oij^'as they understood I could not compel their attendance, and 

(Tj- that they should not appear, if I summoned them, or testify ; 
and therefore I did not summon them. 
And further deponent saith not. 

HORACE CORNWALL. 



125 



District of Connecticut, , 
County of Hartford, ^ 

Hartford, December 27, 1852. 
There personally appeared Horace Cornwall and made 
solemn oath to the truth of the foregoing affidavit, by him 
subscribed, before me. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
Commissioner United States Circuit 

Court for District of Connecticut, 



m 

To H. Cornwall, Esq., Counsel for W. T, G. Morton: 

Please take notice that depositions of David Clark and 
others, concerning discovery of anaesthetic agents, will be 
taken at the office of H. K. W. Welch, before H. L. Rider, 
Esq., or other competent authority, on this 10th day of De- 
cember, A. D. 1852, at 2 o'clock, p. m. 

H. K. W. WELCH, 
Counsel for Mrs. Dr. Wells, 
To any indifferent 

The above is a true copy of original notice. 
Attests A. H. WELCH, 

An indifferent person. 



(A.) 

tlNiTED Staines of Aiv^eiIica, } 
District of Connecticut. ) 

Hartford, November 19, 1852. 
To Elizabeth Wells and Charles Wells : 

Please to take notice that the depositions of William H. 
Ellsworth, Isaac Toucey, Thomas H. Seymour, Joseph Trum- H^a- !»"« 
bull, Thomas S. Williams, Ebene:^er Flower, L. B. Beresford, Jf "-Weiu'i 
Benjamin Rogers^ George Sumner, John S. Butler, Archibald p*""^'"''*' 



126 

Welch, George Brinle}^ James Dixon, Pinckney W. Ellsworth, 
John M. Riggs, F. C. Goodrich, George B. Hawley, C. A. Taft, 
H. Allen Grant, Gordon W. Russell, E. K. Hunt, David Crary, 
John Schru, David E. Robinson, Barzille Hudson, John W. 
Bull, James B. Sherrus, P. F. Bobbins, James Bolter, Perry 
Smith, Charles Benton, Samuel Rockwell, Miles F. Tuttle, 
Thoms Steel, Isaac A. Brayane, Noah Wheaton, Newton Case, 
Benoni A. Shepard, Howell R. Hills, Charles D. Wyman, E. 
B. Kellogg, Philo S. Newton, William S. White, Peter D. 
Stillman, Thomas Roberts, and others, will be taken before 
me on the 22d day of November, 1852, at my office, in the 
city of Hartford, within the said District of Connecticut, at 
10 o'clock in the forenoon of that day, and by adjournment 
after, if necessary, to such times as shall be thought proper, 
to be read in the hearing and trial on the memorial of Wm. 
T. G. Morton, and remonstrance against and memorial of 
Elizabeth W. and Charles Wells, pending before the Congress 
of the United States. At which time and place aforesaid you 
are hereby notified to be present and put interrogations, if 
you shall think fit. 

ERASTUS SMITH, 
Commissioner of United States Circuit 

Court for the District of Connecticut, 
State of Connecticut, ^ 

Town and County of Hartford. ) 



November SO, 1852. 
Then and there I made service of this notice by leaving a 
true and attested copy of the same in the hands of the within 
named Elizabeth W. Wells, and a like true and attested copy 
at the usual place of abode of the said Charles Wells. 

CHESTER ADAMS, 

U. S: Deputy Marshall 
Fees, $1. 



127 



Publication by C. Q. Colton, the person who gave the exhibition 
of ^^ laughing gas^^^ at which WeWs conceived his idea. 

THE CHLOROFORM DISCOVERY. 

The Hartford Times publishes the following letter, which 
will be read with interest, as it relates to a topic of much 
discussion in some quarters : 

New York, March 27th. 

I notice a statement going the rounds of the press, copied 
from your paper, intended to show that Dr. Wells, and not 
Dr. Morton, was the rightful discoverer of the Chloroform. 
As I happen to know something about this matter, it is but 
justice to the memory of a worthy m.an (for 1 esteem him 
such, notwithstanding his unfortunate end,) and to his widow^ 
that I should make it public. I believe I can prove to the 
satisfaction of any candid rrian, that Dr. Wells was the first 
discoverer, and the first to use an agent for relieving pain in 
surgical operations. By reference to the files of your paper, 
you will find that sometime in the summer or fall of 1844, I 
was in your city, giving lectures upon chemistry, &c. — that 
among other experiments, I made and administered the nitrous 
oxyd gas. On several of these occasions. Dr. Wells, with 
others, inhaled it. One day Dr. Wells came into my room, .^^ , -, 

' *' -' ' of Loolev, and 



and asked me if I did not think that the effect of inhaling the nofe the'sop- 

. piession of the 
facts leading to 



gas would be such upon the nerves as to relieve the sense of f'^'"°" °^ ^^^ 



Well 
mert. 



pain in surgical operations. I replied that I could not tell — I 
had given it no thought. He expressed the belief that it 
would ; and said ha would like to try it upon himself the next 
time I made the gas. Accordingly the next day 1 carried a 
bag of the gas to the doctor's office. A neighboring den- 
tist (Dr. Riggs) was present. Dr. Wells sat down in his 
large chair, and breathed the gas till consciousness was 
nearly gone t, when he threw back his head and opened his 
mouth, and the dentist who was present extracted a large 
double tooth. This was effected without the slightest sign 
of pain ; and Dr. Weils said he experienced none — " not 
more than the prick of a pin" were his words — when the 
operation was over. Dr. Wells expressed the greatest de- 
light at the discovery. At his request, I taught him how to why, if it 
make the gas. Soon after this I left Hartford, and supposed le^af"''* "'' 
I should hear no more of Dr. Wells's discovery; but in the 
course of a few weeks, I saw a paragraph in the papers, that eve. 'saw Ldl'a 
Dr. Wells was in Boston, administering the nitrous oxyd, and Ihr^'fi' ""'[l 
extracting teeth under its influence witlwut pain ! I was at ).'TV' ";^^ '"^ 

__ •jjr'^i ' ' n \ T ' faded in the 011- 

once reminaed ot the origin of the discovery. ly experiment 

lie made there. 



The effect of the nitrous oxyd upon the nerves is precisely 
the same as that of ether, letheon, or chloroform — except 
that the latter is a little more lasting in its operation, and 
can be administered with less difficulty. One acts upon the 
nerves directly, while the other acts on the blood, and through 
the blood upon the nerves. Both are chemical agents which 
suspend the action of the nerves during their operation. At 
the time Dr. Wells tried the experiment in Hartford, and at 
Who else ever the timc I saw thc above-mentioned paragraph going the 
JoundsT"^^''^ rounds of the papers, not a word had been said about letheon 
or Dr. Morton. It can be shown, I presume, by the Boston 
journals at what period Dr. Morton made his first experi- 
ments; and your journal and the Courant will show at what 
time I was in Hartford, and when Dr. Wells made the dis- 
covery. I do not doubt that Dr. Wells, being of so frank and 
open nature, communicated his idea to Dr. Morton and Dr. 
Jackson, and one of them probably suggested an improve- 
ment upon the nitrious oxyd — another agent which would 
produce the same effect, and be a little more lasting in its 
operation. 

Under this state of facts, it appears to me that the credit 
of this discovery belongs exclusively to Dr. Wells. The idea 
originated with him, and the first successful experiments were 
tried by him. Tine day and date of all the facts I have stated 
can be fairly established. 

Should you think advisable to make this communication 
public, you are at liberty to do so. 

Respectfully yours, 

G. Q. COLTON. 

The following is introduced to show, by the statement of 
Dr. Ellsworth, on next page, that after Wells's failure at Bos- 
ton, " no one seemed willing to lend him a helping hand, he 
ceased making any further personal efforts." 

The discoverer of the effects of sulphuric ether. 

[Communicated for the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal.] 

We find, by an advertisement in one of the papers, that 
Drs. C. T. Jackson and W. T. G. Morton have made an im- 
portant invention which has been patented, in justice to a 
fellow-townsman, I will give its true history. The first an- 
nouncement publicly made was by myself, more than a year 
since, in an article written for the purpose of establishing the 
doctrine that in disease the vital power is diminished, and 
suggested that in all probability pain was but a peculiar de- 
pressed state of the sensor nerves, and in proof stated that 
stimulants acting upon this system, and having a certain re- 
lation to it, would relieve or prevent suffering ; and that the 
dentists of Hartford were in the habit of administering nitrous 
oxyd gcis, which enabled them to extract teeth without the 



129 

consciousness of the patient. The original discoverer of this 
was Horace Wells, dentist in this city, and he tried the first 
experiment upon himself. After the idea suggested itself to 
him, he debated for some time which to use, the gas or ether, 
but preferred the former as he thought it less liable to injure 
the system. Being now satisfied of its powers, he went to 
Boston for the sole purpose of introducing it to the faculty. 
He presented it to Dr. Warren, who laid it before his class, 
but the experiment first attempted partially failing, and no Proof of fan- 
one seeming willing to lend him an helping hand, he ceased donm"nt ^^"j 
making any further personal efibrts. He especially J^ade J^^JJ? ^{'y ^^j^ 
known his discovery to Drs. Jackson and Morton, neither of ness. 
whom had any idea of it until this moment, and must allow 
Dr. Wells the whole merit of the thing up to this point. We 
see by the Journal that Drs. J. and M. call their invention a 
peculiar compound. I was fully satisfied that sulphuric ether 
was the article, as it was known to be among the ingredients, 
and being there, nothing else was was wanting to produce 
the desired efiect. The claim, as published, sets the matter 
at rest ; ether, and ether alone, is used, and the world will 
easily judge how much right Drs. Jackson and Morton have 
to patent it. Had they been the first to discover the fact that 
any gas would produce exemption from pain, and had made 
it known, they would have deserved commendation. They 
have not done this, nor justice to the true discoverer. Is 
there any merit in using ether in place of nitrous oxyd gas ? 
Certainly not, for the properties of the two things are so alike 
in this respect, that one is constantly used for the other, and 
for months I supposed our dentists were using both ; and the 
idea of allowing any man a patent for the use of the one 
after the efiects of the other were known, is preposterous. 
Dr. Wells's experiments were numerous and satisfactory. One * 
fact discovered, is extremely interesting. It is that, however 
wild and ungovernable a person may be when taking the gas, 
simply for experiment, he becomes perfectly tranquil when it 
is inhaled before an operation : that the mind being prepared, 
seems to keep control over the body, indisposing to any efibrt. 

Unfortunately it is too true, that mystery, as of a nostrum, 
is frequently required to induce people, and sometimes the pro- 
fession, to notice an improvement, and thus far perhaps thanks 
are due Dr. Morton for compelling attention ; yet we must 
give Dr. Wells the credit he justly deserves of making the dis- 
covery, spending time and money in its investigation, and 
then in nobly presenting it to the world. It is to be hoped 
every other gas and substance capable of exciting the nerv- 
ous system may be experimented upon, but we hope no one 
will think of patenting any if discovered to be similar in iti 
operation. 

P, W. ELLSWORTH. 

Hartford, Dec. 9, 1846. 



130 

Evidence that the object of Wells, in visiting Paris, was to 
speculate in paintings. 

Hartford, December 10, 1852. 

Dear Sir : In compliance with your request I make this 
statement of what 1 know of Dr. Wells' going to Paris in 1846. 
The last of November, 1846, a Mr. Eddy had a sale of pic- 
tures at Hartford, in Union hall. At the hall I had a conver- 
sation with Dr. Wells about the business ; Wells said the 
pictures could be got up cheap, and money made by the oper- 
ation ; and, after, at my store, said he knew how to get them 
up, and was going into it. I had some conversation with 
him about going into it myself, and consulted you, as you 
will recollect, about it at the time, and concluded not to do 
so. Wells very soon left for Paris, and returned in the spring. 
He then came into my store, and told the arrangements he 
had made in regard to his pictures, by employing young artists 
very cheap, and had also an agent there to pay for them as 
they were finished and brought in ; and after getting a lot to- 
gether to ship them to New York. I recollect he spoke of 
Dr. Brewster, and said he offered to give him an interest in 
his business if he would remain in Paris. He also said some- 
thing about the gas discovery, and the claim he made to it, 
and other things I do not recollect about. 

Very respectfully, 

E. W. WILLIAMS. 

Mr. H. Cornwall. 

Letters to same purpose, by Dr. Brewster, of Paris. 

Paris, 21^^ March, 1847. 

Dear Sir: I recently received your favor of December 18, 
1846, together with one of your apparatus for the inhalation 
of ether — for them both, as well as for the very kind manner 
in v/hich you speak of myself, you will accept my very sin- 
cere thanks. You have, doubtless, ere this, made great im- 
provements in your apparatus, inasmuch as we at home are 
a sort of go-a-head people, and can, in no case, be behind 
Europe in ingenuity. * * * * # 

Its discovery and use with 3'ou was first communicated to 
me in December last by a medical student from your quarter, 
upon whom I tried an unsuccessful experiment. After this it 
was a long time before I could induce another patient to try 
it. When I did, my experiment was perfectly successful. 
Since which I have used it in many cases with perfect success. 
The like result has generally attended its use in our hospitals, 
where it is in general use. 

The discovery of performing operations in surgery without 
giving pain, is here regarded as the greatest ever made in 
medical science, except that of the vaccine matter. 

I am often appealed to by persons here as to who is the 
true discoverer. 



131 

By the statement of some of the Boston dentists, one would 
think that Dr. Jackson deserves the credit. Then by a letter 
published in your Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, from 
Dr. Ellsworth, it seems that all the credit is due to Dr. Horace 
Wells. Dr. Marcy, of New York, in the Journal of Com- 
merce, gives all the credit to Dr. Wells. 

Dr. Wells has been here. I have freely conversed with 
him, and am disposed to believe him the true original discov- 
erer who first practiced surgical operations (extractions ot 
teeth) without pain. Dr. W's visit to Europe had no connec- 
tion with this discovery, and it was only after I had seen the 
letters of Drs. Ellsworth and Marcy, that I prevailed upon him 
to present his claim to the Academy of Sciences, the Acade- 
my of Medicine and the Parisian Medical Society. If his 
statements are susceptible of proof, he will unquestionably be 
considered the discoverer. Then it remains to decide who is 
to receive the honors and rewards, as by the letter of Dr. 
Jackson, published in the Boston Daily Advertiser of 1st inst., 
you were the first to reduce to practice and promulgate the 
discovery. Many persons knew of and commented on the 
force of steam power, but it was Fulton who first successfully 
and publicly applied it. If Dr. Wells cannot prove that he did 
perform painful operations prior to yourself, then you must 
take the credit. I think that the letter of Dr. Jackson above 
referred to, most clearly takes from him all the honors. 
What did he do ? He says you wished to borrow " an empty 
bag," and he told you that ether would produce insensibility. 
Why it required neither a physician nor a chemist to tell, as 
there is scarcely a school or community in our country, where 
the boys and girls have not inhaled ether to produce gaiety, 
and many are the known cases where they become insensible. 
But did Dr. J. ever perform any surgical operation on these 
in that state. * * * * * *^* * 

BREWSTER. 
Dr. W. T. G. Morton. 

Paris, 24th March, 1847. 

Dear Sir : This day Mr. Poor gave me yours of the 27th 
February, (written by Dr. Warren,) as also your " third cir- 
cular. Voice from Europe." I can scarcely add any thing to 
what I have already said, except to thank you for thinking of 
me. 

That Dr. Jackson wishes to make you play " second fiddle ;" 
that you were to be the ass on whom all the disgrace, if fail- 
ures followed, and he was to be the man, if success attended 
the enterprise, both his and your letters, to my mind, fully 
prove. #**#**♦ 

I am personally unknown to you, and to Dr. Jackson, acci- 
dent threw me into the acquaintance, (yet I ought not to say 
accident, for I sought it.) The acquaintance of Mr. Wells 
and I was prompted to do this from a high sense of justice. 



132 

I had seen Drs. Ellsworth and Marcy's letter, and sent to Dr. 
or Mr. Wells, begging him to call on me. I then told him, 
" are you the true man." His answers, his manner, convinced 
me that he was. Now he has a very difficult task to establish 
his priority, for, in the Academic des Sciences, Dr. J. has one 
of the most influential members as his friend, (his former 
teacher, Eli de Beaumont, and you have no chance of success 
now.) #****** 

BREWSTER. 
Dr. W. T. G. Morton. 

Br. Marcy^s statement, No. 3. 

I take pleasure in certifying, that more than two years since, 
at the request of Horace Wells, Esq., of this city, I visited his 
rooms for the purpose of witnessing the extraction of a tooth 
from a man, while under the influence of the nitrous oxyd gas. 
The idea was novel to me, and I took occasion to be present 
during the operation. The gas was administered by Mr. 
Wells, and the operation performed without any apparent 
suffering on the part of the individual operated upon. I af- 
terwards questioned him in regard to his sensations during 
the extraction, and he assured me that he had not experienced 
the slightest degree of pain. At this time, the comparative 
merits of the gas and of rectified sulphuric ether vapor, were 
discussed, and I gave it as my opinion, that the nitrous oxyd 
gas was the safest, inasmuch as the after-effects of this gas 
are not so unpleasant as from the ether vapor. I also take 
this occasion to assert, from my positive knowledge, that the 
ether vapor was administered very soon after this period (and 
prior to 1845,) for the performance of a surgical operation. 

In conclusion, I beg leave to offer it as my opinion, that the 
man who first discovered the fact that the inhalation of a 
gaseous suT)stance would render the body insensible to pain, 
during surgical operations, should be entitled to all the credit 
or emolument which may accrue from the use of any sub 
stances of this nature. This is the principle — this is the 
fact — this is the discovery. The mere substitution of ether 
vapor, or any other article, for the gas, no more entitles one 
to the claim of a discovery than the substitution of coal for 
wood in generating steam, would entitle one to be called the 
discoverer of the powers of steam. 

E. E. MARCY, M. D. 

Hartford, March 27th, 1847. 

State of Connecticut, Hartford County, ss : 

City of Hartford, March 27, 1847. 

Personally appeared E. E. Marcy, Physician and Surgeon, 
resident in this city, and made solemn oath to the truth of 
the foregoing affidavit by him subscribed before me. 

Given under my hand and the seal of said city, the day and 
year aforesaid. A. M. COLLINS, Mayor. 



133 



Hartford, January 10, 1853. 

Dear Sir : Since you announced, in Hartford, last October, 
that you would give a reward of $100 to any one who would 
discover to you the young many from whose head Dr. E. E. 
Marcy extracted a tumor, under the influence of ether, men- 
tioned by him in an affidavit, I have made very great efibrts 
to find the individual alluded to by him. In the first place, I 
offered a reward of 850, then I offered 875, and after I offered 
the same sum you did, 8100. By offering the smaller sums 
I thought 1 should as readily find the person, and save enough 
to pay me for my trouble. 

I inquired of all the physicians and surgeons in this city, 
that were here as far back as 1844, and of two former students 
of Dr. Marcy, one of which was with him about the time he 
claims to have performed the operation, and also of the citi- 
zens of Hartford and adjoining towns. And I personally of- 
fered the reward, 8100, to Dr. P. W. Ellsworth, the agent of 
Mrs. Wells, if he would find the person and inform me who 
he was. I also offered a like sum to the counsel of Mrs. Wells, 
personally, and also to F. C. Goodrich and many others of the 
friends of Mrs. Wells, who I supposed would be likely to know 
who the person was. But with all my efforts I have not been 
able to find any such person as is mentioned by Dr. Marcy, 
or any one on whom he operated under the influence of ether, 
previous to the time you perfected your discovery in 1846, 
nor any person who could give me any information as to who 
it was. 

Now, I feel entirely satisfied from the efforts that I have 
made, and caused to be made, that had any such operation 
been performed by Dr. Marcy, as he claims, I should have 
found the individual operated upon, or have got some infor- 
mation with regard to him. 

I cannot believe, after this investigation, that any such per- 
son lives, or ever did live, or that any such operation was 
ever performed by Dr. Marcy, and I never can believe it till 
Dr. Marcy presents me the person operated upon. 

And I am strengthened in this unbelief by other things than 
my own investigation. I mean the same investigation made 
by others, and also to Dr. Marcy'stwo affidavits, which I have 
seen, and his statements published in the Journal of Commerce, 
and not until his last affidavit, in 1849, do you find any state- 
ment from him that he ever performed a surgical operation 
under the influence of ether. Now for Dr. M. to say (as I un- 
derstand he does) that he has forgotten the person, is nonsense 
to me, knowing Dr. M. as I do. He is not the man to have 
forgotten a fact so wonderful, nor the name of the person 
upon whom such operation was performed, for he thinks too 



134 

much of anything that will add to his own glory, or pecuniary 
reward. 

I suppose you are under no obligation to pay me anything 
for my trouble in making this search, not having found the 
person for whom you offered the reward, but it has taken a 
good deal of valuable time, and if you feel like making me a 
small recompence, it would be gratefully received. But I 
charge you nothing of course. 

Very respectfully, 

HORACE CORNWALL. 

Dr. Morton. 



Hartford, Conn., January 18, 1853. 
I hereby certify, that I have examined the printed Journals 
of the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of 
Connecticut, for the year 1847, and find the following record 
of proceedings in reference to the discovery attributed to Dr. 
Horace Wells, viz : 

From the Senate Journal. 

'* Tuesday, A. M., June 22, 1847. 
" A Resolution awarding merit to Dr. Horace Wells, of Hart- 
ford, Connecticut, for his discovery of the use of nitrous oxyd 
gas, or vapor of ether, in extraordinary cases of difficult and 
dangerous surgical operations, was read, and on motion refer- 
red to a committee of one Senator, (for the purpose of correc- 
tion,) and the Hon. Mr. Phelps was appointed said com- 
mittee.") 

"Tuesday, P. M., June 22, 1847. 
"The committee, to whom was referred the resolution con- 
cerning the discovery by Dr. Wells, reported the following, 
which was passed, to wit : 

"General Assembly, May session, 1847. 

" Whereas, it being understood by this Assembly, that Dr. 
Horace Wells, of Hartford, discovered in 1844, that nitrous 
oxyd gas, or the vapor of ether, inhaled by persons, causes in- 
sensibility to pain in amputation, or other surgical operations ; 
which discovery has been most honorably noticed by various 
Medical Societies in London, and by the Academy of Medi- 
cine, and by the Parisian Medical Society in France, and has 
since been in use in England, France, and in this country ; 
Therefore. 

" Resolved hy this Assembly ^ That the aforesaid discovery 
by Dr. Wells, of Hartford, Connecticut, of the use of nitrous 
oxyd gas, or vapor of ether, in surgical operations, is of great 
importance to the public, and entitles the inventor to the fa- 
vorable consideration of his fellow-citizens, and to the high 
station of a public benefactor." 



135 

House of Representatives. 
"Wednesday afternoon, June 23, 1847. 
" Joint resolution awarding to Dr. Horace Wells, of Hart- 
ford, the discovery that nitrous oxyd gas, or the vapor of ether, 
inhaled by persons, causes insensibility to pain in amputations 
or other surgical operations, and declaring, in the opinion of 
this Assembly, that the aforesaid discovery is of great impor- 
tance, and entitles the discoverer to the favorable considera- 
tion of his felloviT-citizens, and to the high station of a public 
benefactor, came from the Senate passed — House concurred 
in the passage thereof." 

On the day follovring, to wit, Thursday, June 24, 1847, the 
General Assembly adjourned, sine die. 

And I further certify, that in the printed reports of the pro- 
ceedings of the House of Representatives, for the session 
above named, the remarks of Messrs. Chapman, of Hartford, 
Woodward, of Middletown, Cleveland, of Hampton, and Car- 
ter, of Farmington, are briefly set forth in favor of the pas- 
sage of the Resolution referred to, and of Messrs. Hill, of Nor- 
walk, and Russell, and Peck of New Haven, in opposition to 
the same, 

R. A. EWING, 

Executive Secretary, Ct, 



32d Congress, [SENATE.] Rsp. Com. 

2d Session. No. 421. 



IN SENATE OF THE UNITED SENATE. 



FsBftUABT 19, 18 53-— Ordered to be printed. 



Mr, Walker made the following 

REPORT: 

[To accompany an amendment intended to be proposed to the act (H. R. 336) ^making 
appropriation for the support of the army for the year ending June 30, 1854."] 

The select committee^ to which were referred the various memorials 
in regard to the discovert/ of the means by which the human body 
is rendered uniformly and safely insensible to pain under surgi- 
cal operations, has had the subject under consideration, and now 
report : 

That in the opinion of the committee such a discovery has been 
made, and that the credit and honor of the discovery belong to 
one of the following persons, all citizens of the United States, to 
wit : William T. G. Morton, Horace Wells, deceased, or Charles 
T. Jaclcson ; but to which of these persons in particular the dis- 
covery should be awarded, the committee is not unanimous, and 
consequently the committee is of opinion that this point should 
not be settled by Congress without a judicial inquiry. 

But the committee has no hesitancy in saying, that to the man 
who has bestowed this boon upon mankind, when he shall be cer- 
tainly made known, the highest honor and reward are due which 
it is compatible with the institutions of our country to bestow. 

The means of safely producing insensibility to pain in surgical 
and kindred operations have been the great desideratum in the 
curative art from the earliest period of medical science, and have 
been zealously sought for during a period of more than a thou- 
sand years. At various periods, and in various ages, hope has 
been excited in the human breast that this great agent had been 
found ; but all proved delusive, and hope as often died awaj'^, un- 
til the discovery now under consideration burst upon the world 
from our own country, and in our own day. Then, and not until 
then, was the time-cherished hope realized that the knife would 
lose its sting, and that blood might follow its edge without pain. 

But for the committee to dilate upon the importance of this 
discovery were futile indeed. The father or mother who has 
seen a child, or the child who has a father or mother, upon the 
surgeon's table, writhing and shrieking from pain and agony — 
the husband who has seen his wife suffering, perhaps dying, un- 



2 

der the undurable pangs of parturition, the extirpation of a breast 
or cancer, or the amputation of a limb, while she appealed and 
implored for help and ease which he could not otherwise render— 
the commander who has seen his soldiers, and the soldier who 
has seen his companion, sink, nervously shocked to death from 
pain, in the absence of this alleviation — and the suurgeon who 
is forced to torture, while, perhaps, he weeps— can all more redily 
feel the magnitude and blessing of this discovery than the com- 
mittee can describe it. Indeed, while the heart of man shall re- 
main human, or possess the power to pulsate in sympathy with 
human suffering, it would seem that none would deny it the meed 
of pre-eminence among the discoveries of any age. 

Leaving, therefore, the importance of the discovery, as a mat- 
ter conceded by all, the committee will proceed to the considera- 
tion of another inquiry, which is — has Congress the constitutional 
power to grant pecuniary reward for the use and benefit of the 
discovery, had and derived by the Government in its military and 
naval service, its hospitals, and asylums ? 

Were this an original question, or one presented for the first 
time, it would seem that very little reflection ought to satisfy the 
most jealous objector that such a power is possessed by Congress. 
Were it not so, the Government might become the veriest laggard 
in every species of progress ; or, to escape that difliculty, must be- 
come the worst and only resistless pirate upon the rights, inven- 
tions, and discoveries of its citizens. For instance : an invention 
in mechanical, or a discovery in physical science is made. By its 
use, private individuals and governments, having' the power to 
avail themselves of it, transmit a message in a minute, which 
would otherwise require a week ; propel a ship to a given point 
in a week, which, without the availed discovery, would require a 
month ; send their agents or soldiers to a point in a day, which 
could not be reached, formerly, in twenty ; or print matter in an 
hour, which formerly required a day : while our Government, not 
possessing the rightful power to avail itself of the invention or 
discovery, must necessarily lag behind private individuals and all 
other Governments, whether in peace or war, and move on in the 
old and slothful paths j or it must do by piracy, or usurpation,, 
what it is alleged it cannot do constitutionally — infringe the pri- 
vate rights of its citizens, and avail itself by might of that which 
it cannot obtain by the exercise of rightful power. But, before 
it can do even this, it must be first conceded that the Government 
ean reach an unconstitutional but necessary end by means of a 
constitutional wrong. Tbe bare proposition involves so plain a 
solicism, that serious consid oration of it is precluded. 

As an original and open question, then, the committee would 
be of opinion that Congress does possess the power to avail itself 
of the use of the discovery under consideration ; or having had, 
and still having the use and benefit of it, can rightfully grant a 
reward for that use and benefit. 



But the committee cannot view the question of power as an 
original or open one. The time is too long, and the instances are 
too numerous, in which the power has been exercised, to allow 
of its being so considered. A list of some of the cases in which 
the power in question has been exercised, will be found appended 
to this report ; but the committee will here allude to a class of 
cases involving the power to the extreme limit — cases in which 
the Government has even stood forth to assist private individuals, 
with money, in their efforts to make and perfect their discoveries 
and inventions : such, for instance, as the cases of Professors 
Morse, Page, and Espy. 

The committee being of opinion that this discovery is eminently 
meritorious, and its use by the Government of vast and incalcula- 
ble value and benefit, have concluded to recommend to the favor- 
able consideration of the Senate the accompanying provision, by 
way of amendment to the army appropriation bill. 

[This proposition gives $100,000 to the discoverer.] 



Views of the Chairman on ^^An Examination of the Question of 

AncEsthesia.^'' 

While the question of anaesthesia, on the memorials of sundry 
persons, was under consideration by the Select Committee 
of the Senate, of which I was Chairman, a paper entitled "An 
Examination of the auESTioN of anesthesia," prepared by the Hon. 
Truman Smith, a member of the Committee, and having thus a 
quasi official character, was printed and circulated among the 
members of the Senate and House of Representatives. And as, 
in my opinion, that paper present^ a one-sided and partial view 
of the question ; such as might be expected of an advocate of 
easy faith in his client's cause, and strong indignation against all 
that oppose it ; and consequently comes to a conclusion widely 
different from that which a calm and impartial consideration of 
the whole case would warrant, I deem it an act of mere justice 
to the person who I believe has the right, to present also the 
opinion which I have formed upon the same points after a care- 
ful examination. 

The writer of that paper gives the whole merit of the discovery 
of practical anaesthesia to the late Dr. Horace Wells, of Hart- 
ford, Connecticut, and he denounces, in no measured terms, as 
pirates and impostors both the other claimants to that distinguish- 
ed honor. He is especially bitter and abusive of Dr. Morton, 
whose character is above all reproach, and whose claim tc the 
contested prize is supported by very strong evidence, while he 
shows some little forbearance towards Dr. Jackson, w^io has 
failed in making out his claim. The strength of his denuncia- 
tions against the respective parties, and the degree of villany 
which he imputes to them is in direct proportion to the strength 
of their proofs. 



I feel no interest or wish in this matter, except that the truth 
may be arrived at, and right and justice done ; and that I may 
discharge faithfully the duty which the Senate has imposed on 
me by the reference, by endeavoring to obtain it, and present it. 
And it is but fair to say, in the outset, that, after a careful exami- 
nation of all the allegations and proofs to which I have had ac- 
cess, my mind is made up — my opinion formed on the question — 
and that I concur with the Board of Trustees of the Massachusetts 
Medical Hospital in the opinion expressed in their report of Jan- 
uary 26th, 1848, and with the two committees of the House of 
Representatives of 1849 and 1852, that Dr. W. T. G. Morton first 
discovered and brought into general use a safe, certain, and effi- 
cient aucESthetic agent, applicable generally to all dentrical, sur- 
gical, and obstetrical cases, and that he is entitled to whatever 
honor and reward are due to the discovery, and the free and ge- 
neral use of it, by the army and navy of the United States, by 
the country, and by the civilized world. 

Di\ T\^eUs not the original conceiver of AncBsthesia. 

He was, however, by no means the first that ^^ formed a distinct 
conception of ancesthesia.^^ Nor was Dr. Horace Wells, or Dr. C. 
T. Jackson. If we trace the ^^ conception"" as far back through 
the lapse of ages as it is disclosed to us by history, we will find 
they were, each and all of them, among the last that entertained 
it. Nor was either of them the first that ''attained that end by 
means, good and satisfactory " for a time, at least, to themselves 
and a circle of select friends who felt pride or interest in finding 
the means " satisfactory." None, however, as far as we know, 
prior to Dr. Morton, attained it by '^ means ^^ deemed "good and 
satisfactory" by the medical profession generally throughout the 
civilized world, and published to the world the discovery of m.eans 
such as that profession generally would venture to receive and 
bring into use. But the world, for more than two thousand years 
past, has teemed with the discovery and use of various agents, 
clearly and indubitably possessed of anaesthetic qualities, used in 
some instances — many of them frequently and for a long time*— 
with considerable reputation and success. None of them, how- 
ever, prior to the introduction of the use of the vapor of sulphuric 
ether by Dr. Morton, were able to make its way or hold its place 
among an intelligent and scientific modern medical profession. 
A history of these anaesthetic agents, their qualities and use was 
not long since published by Dr. J. Y. Simpson, of Edinburg, 
to whose brief but elegant essay the committee of the House of 
Representatives who reported on this question in 1852 was large- 
ly indebted for the facts given in the historical introduction to 
their very able report — the following extract fr©m w^hich is fully 
to my present purpose : 



J 



Letlieon Anodynes used by the Ancients. 

** Intense pain is regarded by mankind^ generally, as so serious 
an evil that it would have been strange indeed if efforts had not 
been early made to diminish this species of suffering. The use of 
the juice of the poppy, henbane, mandragora, and other narcotic 
preparations, to effect this object by their deadening influence, 
may be traced back till it disappears in the darkness of a highly 
remote antiquity. Intoxicating vapors were also employed, by 
way of inhalation, to produce the same effects as drugs of this 
nature introduced into the stomach. This appears from the ac- 
count given by Herodotus, of the practice of the Scythians, seve- 
ral centuries before Christ, of using the vapor of hemp seed as a 
means of drunkenness. The known means of stupefaction were 
very early resorted to, in order to counteract pain produced by 
artificial causes. In executions, under the horrible form of cruci- 
fixion, soporific mixtures were administered to alleviate the pangs 
of the victim. The draught of vinegar and gall, or myrrh, offered 
to the Savior in his agony, was the ordinary tribute of human 
sympathy extorted from the bystander by the spectacle of intole- 
rable anguish. 

" That some letheon anodyne might be found to assuage the tor- 
ment of surgical operations as they were anciently performed, 
cauterizing the cut surfaces, instead of tying the arteries, was 
not only a favorite notion, but it had been in some degree, how- 
ever imperfect, reduced to practice. Pliny, the naturalist, who 
perished in the eruption of Vesuvius, which entombed the city of 
Herculaneum, in the year 79, bears distinct and decided testi- 
mony to this fact. 

" It has a soporific power," says he in his description of the 
plant known as the mandragora or circeius, " It has a soporific 
power on the faculties of those who drink it. The ordinary potion 
is half a cup. It is drunk against serpents, and before cuttings 
and puncturings, lest they should be felt." (Bibitur et contra 
serpentes, et ante sectiones, punctionesque, ne sentiantur.) 

When he comes to speak of the plant eruca, called by us the 
rocket, he informs us that its seeds, when drunk, infused in wine, 
by criminals about to undergo the lash, produce a certain cal- 
lousness or induration of feeling, {duaitiam quondam contra sen- 
sum induere.) 

Pliny also asserts that the stone Memphitis, powdered and ap- 
plied in a liniment with vinegar, will stupefy parts to be cut or 
cauterized, " for it so paralyzes the part that it feels no pain ; nee 
sentit cruciatum,^^ 

Antiquity of AncBsthesia. 

Dioscorides, a Greek physician of Cilicia, in Asia, who was 
born about the time of Plin3^'s death, and who wrote an exten- 
sive work on the materia medica, observes, in his chapter on 
mandragora — 



1. "Some boil down the roots in wine to a third part, and 
preserve the juice thus procured, and give one cyathus of it in 
sleeplessness and severe pains, of whatever part ; also, to cause 
the insensibility — to produce the anaesthesia {poiein anaisthesian) 
of those who are to he cut or cauterized.''^ 

2. " There is prepared, also, besides the decoction, a wine from 
the bark of the root, three minae being thrown into a cask of 
sweet wine, and of this three cyathi are given to those who are to 
be cut or cauterized, as aforesaid; for being thrown into a deep 
sleep, they do not perceive pain." 

3. Speaking of another variety of mandragora, called morion, 
he observes, "medical men use it also for those who are to be cut 
or cauterized." 

Dioscorides also describes the stone Memphitis, mentioned by 
Plinj^, and says that when it is powdered and applies to parts to 
be cut or cauterized, they are rendered, without the slightest 
danger, wholly insensible to pain. Matthiolus, the commentator 
on Dioscorides, confirms his statement of the virtues of mandra- 
gora, which is repeated by Dodoneus. "Wine in which the 
roots of mandragora has been steeped," says this later writer, 
"brings on sleep, and appeases all pains, so that it is given to 
those who are to be cut, sawed, or burned, in any parts of their 
body, that they may not perceive pain." 

The expressions used by Apuleius, of Madaura, who flourished 
about a century after Pliny, are still more remarkable than those 
already quoted from the older authors. He says, when treating 
of mandragora, "If any one is to have a member mutilated, 
burned, or sawed, {mutilandum, comburendum, vel serrandam^ let 
him drink half an ounce with wine, and let him sleep till the mem- 
ber is cut away, without any pain or sensation, {et tantum dormiety 
quosque abscindatur membrum aliquo sine dolore et sensu.") 

Ancesthetic agents used in China centuries ago. 

It was not in Europe and in Western Asia alone that these 
early efforts to discover some letheon were made, and attended 
with partial success. On the opposite side of the continent, the 
Chinese, who have anticipated the Europeans in so many import- 
ant inventions, as in gunpowder, the mariner's compass, printing, 
lithography, paper money, and the use of coal, seem to have been 
quite as far in advance of the occidental world in medical science. 
They understood, ages before they were introduced into Christen- 
dom, the use of substances containing iodine for the cure of the 
goitre, and emplo3^ed spurred rye, ergot, to shorten dangerously 
prolonged labor in difficult accouchments. Among the therapeutic 
methods confirmed by the experience of thousands of years, there- 
cords of which they have preserved with religious veneration, the 
employment of an anesthetic agent to paralyze the nervous sensi- 
bility before performing surgical operations, is distinctly set forth. 
Among a considerable number of Chinese works on the pharma- 



eopseia, medicine, and surgery in the National Library at Paris, 
is one entitled, Kou-kin-i-tongy or general collection of ancient 
and modern medicine, in fifty volumes quarto. Several hundred 
biographical notices of the most distinguished physicians in China 
are prefixed to this work. The following curious passages occur 
in the sketches of the biography of Hoa-tho, who flourished under 
the dynasty of Wei, between the years 220 and 230 of our era. 
" When he determined that it was necessary to employ acupunc- 
ture, he applied it in two or three places; and so with the moxa^ 
if that was indicated by the nature of the affection to be treated. 
But if the disease resided in parts upon which the needle, moxa^ 
or liquid medicaments could not operate, for example in the 
bones, or the marrow of the bones, in the stomach, or the intes- 
tines, he gave the patient a preparation of hemp, (in the Chinese 
language mayo) and after a few moments he became as insensi- 
ble as if he had been drunk or dead. Then, as the case required, 
he performed operations, incisions, or amputations, and removed 
the cause of the malady, then he brought together and secured 
the tissues, and applied liniments. After a certain number of 
days, the patient recovered, without having experienced during 
the operation the slightest pain. Hoa-tho has published, under the 
title of Nei-tchaO'tfiou, anatomical plates, which exhibit the inte- 
rior of the human body, which have come down to our times, and 
<5njoy a great reputation." 

It will be noticed that the agent employed by Hoa-tho, which 
he calls ma-yo, hemp medicine, and which is called in the annals 
of the latter Hans, mnfo-san, or hemp essence powder, is the ex- 
tract of the same plant mentioned by Herodotus, twenty-three 
centuries ago, cannabis Indica, the haschisch of the Arabs, which 
is now extensively cultivated in Hindostan, for the purpose of 
manufacturing the substance called Bhang, to produce a peculiar 
species of intoxication, at first seductive and delicious, but fol- 
fowed in its habitual use by terrible effects upon the constitution. 

Almost a thousand years after the date of the unmistakeable 
phrases quoted from Apuleius, acccording to the testimony of 
William of Tyre, and other chronicles of the wars for the rescue 
of the holy sephulcre, and the fascinating narrative of Marco 
Polo, a state of anaesthesia was induced for very different purpo- 
ses. It became an instrument in the hands of bold and crafty 
impostors to perpetrate and extend the most terrible fanaticism 
that the world has ever seen. 

Inhalation of an Anodyne Vapor in the thirteenth century. 

The employment of anaeesthetic agents in surgical operations, 
was not forgotten or abandoned during the period when they 
were pressed into the appalling service just described. In the 
thirteenth century, anaesthesia was produced by inhalation of 
an anodyne vapor, in a mode oddly forestalling the practices 



of the present day, which is thus described in the following pas- 
sage of the surgical treatise of Theodoric, who died in 1293. It 
is the receipt for the " spongia somnifera," as it is called in the 
rubric : 

" The preparation of a scent for performing surgical operations, 

according to Master Hugo. It is made thus : Take of opium and 
the juice of unripe mulberry, of hyoscyamus, of the juice of the 
hemlock, of the juice of the leaves of the mandragora, of the juice 
of the woody ivy, of the juice of the forest mulberry, of the seeds 
of lettuce, of the seed of the burdock, which has large and round 
apples, and of the w^ater hemlock, each one ounce ; mix the whole 
of these together in a brazen vessel, and then in it place a new 
sponge, and let the whole boil, and as long as the sun on the dog 
days, till it (the sponge) consumes it all, and let it be boiled away 
in it. As often as there is need of it, place this same sponge into 
warm water for one hour, and let it be applied to the nostrils till 
he who is to be operated on {qui incidentus est) has fallen asleep ; 
and in this state let the operation be performed {et sic fiat chi- 
rurgia.) When this is finished, in order to rouse him, place 
another, dipped in vinegar, frequently to his nose, or let the juice 
of the roots of fenigreek be squirted into his nostrils. Presently 
he awakens." 

Prophylactic agents used during the middle ages. 

Guy de Chauliac and Brunus are the only authors on medicine 
and surgery, besides Theodoric, Vv^ho, during this period, allude to 
prophylactic agents to avert pain. It may be presumed, there- 
fore, that their employment was not generally very successful. 
Probably bad effects, such as congestion and asphjxia, and some- 
times ending in death, followed their unskillful empiricism. J. 
Canappe, the physician of Francis L, in his work printed at Lyons 
in 1535, Le Guidon pour les Barhiers et les Chirurgiens, the Sur- 
geon's and Barber's Guide, describes the method of Theodoric 
and his followers, as already given above, and adds : " Les autres 
donnent opium a boire, et font mal, specialement s'il est jeune ; et 
le apergoivent, car ce est avec une grande bataille de vertu ani- 
male et naturelle. J'ai oui quilz encourent manie, et par conse- 
quent la mort." 

Thus much is known to us of the efforts of the medical faculty 
in remote antiquity and during the middle ages, to destroy or mit- 
igate pain in surgical operations — and they were attended with 
a certain degree of success, especially the " spongia somnifera '* 
described by Theodoric, the use of which was again revived in 
our own times. 

French experiments in 1832, exactly parallel to those of Dr. Wells^ 

in 1844. 
" A French physician, residing in the neighborhood of Toulouse, 
M. Dauriol, asserts that, in in the year 1832, he employed a 



method analogous to that of Theodoric, and specifies five cases in 
which he succeeded in performing painless operations." 

The success of the modern revival of this ancient anaesthetic 
agent, appears to have been about equal to that of Dr. Wells 
with the nitrous oxyd. M. Dauriol says he applied it successfully 
and specifies five cases in which he performed operations with- 
out pain, and it may be reasonably inferred, without previous 
mental preparation. Dr. Wells performed an operation, that of 
extracting a tooth or teeth, on " ten or fifteen " persons as he says, 
but the first and only exhibition he made of it out of his own 
town was a failure, and brought him and his nostrum into ridi- 
cule. He certainly did no more in 1844 to prove the utility of 
nitrous oxyd as an anaesthetic agent, than Dauroil had done for the 
spongia somnifera in 1832. Nor did he do more to advance the 
general idea of anaesthesia, or to commend it to the favorable 
notice of the medical faculty. Nor did M. Dauriol stand alone in 
this department of medical science : 

English use of Gases to produce insensibility in 1828. 

" September 23, 1828, M. Girardin read a letter before the Acad- 
emy of Medicine, addressed to his Majesty Charles X., by Mr. 
Hickman, a surgeon of London, in which this surgeon announces 
a means of performing the most delicate and most dangerous ope- 
rations without producing pain in the individuals submitted to 
them. This proceeding consists in suspending insensibility by the 
methodical introduction of certain gases into the lungs. Mr. 
Hickman had tested his proceedings by repeated experiments on 
animals." 

But neither of their discoveries met with any considerable suc- 
cess. Neither was acknowledged or adopted by the medical pro- 
fession, though both had formed " a distinct conception of ancBsthe- 
sia,''^ and both of them " attained that end " by means " good and 
satisfactory^" to themselves, though not to the medical profession. 

Other anaesthetic agents have been tried, with some success, 
but never brought into general use, nor obtained the approval of 
an enlightened medical faculty. 

"Haller, Deneux, and Blandin, report cases of operations per- 
formed upon patients under the influence of alcholic intoxication, 
in obstetric and other cases, without pain ; and Richerand has sug- 
gested that this expedient should be employed in the management 
of dislocations difficult to be reduced. For obvious reasons it 
has not been adopted by the profession. Mesmerism, also, has 
been the subject of grave discussions, and of some extraordinary 
statements, in this connection ; but, whatever may be thought of 
the individual cases certified by witnesses, it is not too much to 
say that it is not likely ever to become a remedy of general ap- 
plication." 



10 

The last named agent, Mesmerism, consists wholly, perhaps, in 
^^ mental prejjaration" which alone holds a prominent place in 
Dr. Wells's experiments. 

Dr. Wells did not " discover''* Ancssthesia. 

I will now proceed to consider more particularly the subject of 
the alledged discovery of Dr. Wells. And whether he did, in fact, 
discover any thing not already known, or bring into general use, 
among the medical profession, a quality or a substance already 
known, but which had been theretofore neglected. 

That he did not first discover " anaesthesia " as a condition of 
the human frame, or that various substances, solid, liquid, and 
gaseous, would produce it, is manifest from what I have already 
shown. The fact has been well understood from the first dawn 
of medical science, through all ages and at all times, down to the 
present day. JNor has he discovered that the property of produc- 
ing anaesthesia exists in a substance not heretofore known to 
possess it, for, that property of the nitrous oxyd has been long 
well known. And the use to which Dr. Wells applied it, was an- 
ticipated by Sir Humphrey Davy more than half a century ago. 
In his researches on nitrous oxyd, p. 276, he says : 

Sir Humphrey Davy described the properties of Nitrous Oxyd 
fifty years since. 

" In one instance, when I had headache from indigestion, it was 
immediately removed by the effects of a large dose of gas ; though 
it afterwards returned, but with much less violence. In a second 
instance, a slighter degree of headache was wholly removed by 
two doses of gas. 

" The power of the immediate operation of the gas in removing 
intense physical pain, I had a very good opportunity of ascertaining, 

" In cutting one of the unlucky teeth called dentes sapientiae, I 
experienced an extensive inflammation of the gum, accompanied 
with great pain, which equally destroyed the power of repose, 
and of consistent action. 

" On the day when the inflammation was most troublesome, I 
breathed three large doses of nitrous oxyd. The pain always di- 
minished after the first four or five inspirations ; the thrilling 
came on as usual, and uneasiness was for a few minutes swal- 
lowed up in pleasure. As the former state of mind however re- 
turned, the state of organ returned with it ; and I once imagined 
that the pain was more severe after the experiment than before." 

And on page 32 : 

" As nitrous oxyd^ in its extensive operations, appears capable 
of destroying physical pain, it may probably be used with advan- 
tage during surgical operations in which no great effusion of 
blood takes place." 



11 

So that Dr. Wells could claim no originality in the discovery 
or conception of anaesthesia, or of the fact that nitrous oxyd, as 
well as many other substances, would produce it. 

And I have also as clearly shown that he was not the first to 
apply anaesthesia to destroy pain in surgical operations. The 
practice was familiar with ancients. The northern and eastern 
nations, as well as the Greeks and Romans, understood and prac- 
tised it, and the preparation of the aneesthetic agent was a fami- 
liar head in the dispensatories of the middle ages, and the prac- 
tice was not entirely abandoned in modern times. Mr. Girardin 
recommended it in 1828. M. Dauriol used it in surgical opera- 
tions in 1832. 

So, also, did Hallena, Denwin, and Blandia ; in short, the pre- 
ceeding pages show clearly that Dr. Wells had no claims as the 
originator of aaesthesia, or as having been (to use the words of 
the writer of the " Examination ") the first being upon whom an 
ancesthetic operation was performed. 

The next proposition we shall discuss is, that — 

The experiments of Dr. Wells did not advance the discovery. 

The testimony showing the truth of this assertion may be best 
considered by distributing it according to its applicability to the 
following cardinal points, viz : 

1st. That of the anaesthetic agents, known or unknown to the 
scientific world, he selected one which is certain, safe, and effec- 
tual. 

2d. That he so applied it as to satisfy the medical profession of 
its utility. 

3d. And. that he so published it as to bring it into general use. 

Now, I appeal to all candid and impartial men, I submit to an 
intelligent public, whether in the then state of medical science as 
I have shown it, these three conditions were not necessary to con- 
stitute a just title to the honor and reward which is here claimed. 

I will now proceed to an examination of the evidence, and en- 
deavor to ascertain, therefrom, whether any or all of these con- 
ditions were fulfilled by Dr. Wells. 

Total absence of any publication until Dr. Morton's success was 

known. 

And, in the first place, it is worthy of remark that, in the case 
of Dr. Wells, we have not one stroke of pen or pencil by him, 
either in a private memorandum, friendly letter, or published 
essay, in which he claims to have had any knowledge, or to have 
made any use of sulphuric ether, prior to his letter of December 
7th, 1846, at which date America and Europe rang with the lame 
of the then new discovery, of its perfect anaesthetic qualities. 
Nor does he in that letter claim to have done any thing more 
than to have thought of it, spoken of it to Dr. Marcy, and, by 



12 

his advice, to have rejected it. But in his letter published in 
Galignani's Messenger, of February 7, 1847, he says : "Since this 
discovery was made, 1 have administered the nitrous oxyd and 
sulphuric ether to about fifty patients," leaving it to be inferred 
by a cursory reader, but by no means saying that he tried sul- 
phuric ether before it was brought into public use by Dr. Morton. 
This equivocal statement of Dr. Wells, if it be understood to ex- 
tend to the use of sulphuric ether prior to September 30, 1846, 
is supported only by the testimony of John G. Wells, taken with- 
in the present winter. He says : 

" On this occasion sulphuric ether was administered by Dr. 
Wells. I am quite sure it was early in 1845, a long time ante- 
rior to the period when Dr. Morton, of Boston, first announced 
his discovery. The ether was unpleasant in its effects, though 
the tooth was extracted without pain. I therefore advised my 
friends not to use it, but rather the exhilarating gas." 

Claim in 1853 that Dr. Wells had used Ether, refuted hy Dr, 
Wells himself in 1847. 

But this testimony is subject to several difficulties — 1st. Dr. 
Wells, in publishing his discovery December 7th, 1846, does not 
pretend to have ever administered sulphuric ether. 

2d. This same witness testified in March, 1847, and does not 
pretend, in his then testimony, that sulphuric ether was ever ad- 
ministered to him. His deposition is as follows : 

Hartford, March 26, 1847. 

I hereby testify that, more than two years prior to this date, 
on being informed that Horace Wells, dentist, of this city, had 
made a valuable discovery, by which means he could extract 
teeth without pain to the patient, which consisted in the use of 
stimulating gas, or vapor, I inhaled the exhilerating gas, and un- 
der its influence, had six extracted without the least pain. I 
would further state, that for more than eighteen months from the 
time I first submitted to this operation by the application of gas, 
I heard no other name mentioned as the discoverer, except that 
of the above-named Horace Wells. 

J. GAYLORD WELLS, 

184 J Main street. 

3d. And Dr. Wells, on his return from Europe in 1847, dis- 
tinctly stated to Professor Hayward that he never had operated 
on a subject under the influence of sulphuric ether. Dr. Hay- 
ward said, in answer to to interrogatory : 

16th. Did you have a conversation wdth Dr. Horace Wells, of 
Hartford, on the subject of anaesthesia ? If yea, when, and who 
was present? Please give the whole conversation. 

Ans. He called at my house after his return from France ; 
after we had begun to use the ether as an anaesthetic. There 
was no one present but Dr. Wells and myself. It was in my 



18 

study. I then asked him if he had ever used sulphuric ether by 
inhalation, so as to render any one insensible to pain, and per- 
formed any surgical operation on the individual while in that 
state. His answer was that he had not. 

Again: Dr. Wells in his letter of February 7, 1847, to Galig- 
nani^s Messenger, says : 

" The less atmospheric air admitted into the lungs with, any 
gas or vapor, the better ; the more satisfactory will be the result 
of the operation." 

From this it is evident he knew nothing of the properties or 
use of sulphuric ether. It will not support respiration, and the 
patient who should breathe it without a mixture of atmospheric 
air, would be instantly suffocated to death. Dr. Wells could never 
have used it, for if he had, he would have killed his patient. 

An assertion to the effect that he had so used it prior to his 
letter of December 7, 1846, would have been entitled to no 
credit in the face of that letter, but he does not make it, and 
it would perhaps be doing him injustice to suppose that, by 
his vague and indefinite language, he intended it should be 
so understood. It is, however, sufficient for the purpose of this 
inquiry that there is neither assertion or proof that he even 
tried an experiment with sulphuric ether prior to Dr. Morton's 
discovery, September 30th, 1846 ; that he thought of it, and 
spoke of it, if it be conceded that he did so, prior to that time, 
is a matter of no importance. Nor if he in fact made experi- 
ments with sulphuric ether, does it amount to any thing more 
than this: that he discredited it instead of approving it, as an 
ancBsthetic agent. He does not intimate in either of his letters 
that he communicated his conception as to sulphuric ether, if any 
such he then had to either Dr. Morton or Dr. Jackson. Dr. Wells, 
therefore, is entitled to nothing so far as merit depends upon dis- 
covering and making public the use of sulphuric ether as a safe, 
certain, and effectual anaesthetic agent. His claims are there- 
fore necessarily limited to his development of the anseesthetic 
properties of nitrous oxyd, and to the use which he made of that 
agent and the introduction into public use while he gave it. 

Dr. Wells's experiments confined to Nitrous Oxyd. 

On this particular agent he wrote and published nothing prior 
to December 7, 1846, when there had been made known to and 
received by the world at large an acknowledged safe, certain, 
and efficient anassthetic agent — sulphuric ether — then he wrote 
and set up his claim ; 1 give it at length in his own words. 

From the Hartford Courant. 

Hartford, December 7, 1846. 
Mr. Editor : You are aware that there has been much said 
of late respecting a gas, which, when inhaled, so paralyzes the 



14 

system as to render it insensible to pain. The Massachusetts 
General Hospital have adopted its use, and amputations are now 
being performed without pain. Surgeons generally, throughout 
the country, are anxiously waiting to know what it is, that they 
may make a trial of it, and many have already done so with 
uniform success. As Drs. Charles T. Jackson and W. T. G. Mor- 
ton, of Boston, claim to be the originators of this invaluable 
discovery, I will give a short history of its introduction, that the 
public may decide to whom belongs the honor. 

While reasoning from analogy, I was led to believe that the 
inhaling of any exhilarating ga$, sufficient to cause a great ner 
vous excitement, would so paralyze the system as to render it 
insensible to pain, or nearly so, for it is well known that when 
an individual is very much excited by passion, he scarcely feels 
the severe wound which may at the time be inflicted, and the in- 
dividual who is said to be " dead drunk," may receive severe 
blows, apparently without the least pain, and when in this state 
is much more tenacious of life than when in the natural state. 
I accordingly resolved to try the experiment of inhaling an exhil- 
arating gas myself, for the purpose of having a tooth extracted. 
I then obtained some nitrous oxyd gas, and requested Dr. J. M. 
Riggs to perform the operation, at the moment when I should 
give the signal, resolving to have the tooth extracted before losing 
all consciousness. This experiment proved to be perfectly suc- 
cessful — it was attended with no pain whatever. I then per- 
formed the same operation on twelve or fifteen others, with the 
same results. 

I was so much elated with the discovery, that I started imme- 
diately for Boston, resolving to give it into the hands of proper 
persons, without expecting to derive any pecuniary benefit there- 
from. I called on Drs. Warren and Haywood, and made known 
to them the result of the experiments I had made. They ap- 
peared to be interested in the matter, and treated me with much 
kindness and attention. I was invited by Dr. Warren to address 
the medical class upon the subject at the close of his lecture. 

I accordingly embraced the opportunity, and took occasion to 
remark that the same result would be produced, let the nervous 
S3^stem be excited sufficiently by any means whatever; that I 
had made use of nitrous oxyd gac, or protoxyd of nitrogen, as 
being the most harmless. I was then invited to administer it to 
one of the patients, who was expecting to have a limb ampu- 
tated. 

I remained some two or three days in Boston for this purpose, 
but the patient decided not to have the operation performed at 
that time. It was then proposed that I should administer it to 
an individual for the purpose of extracting a tooth. Accordingly, 
a large number of students, with several physicians, met to see 
the operation performed — one of their number to be a patient. 
Unfortunately for the experiment, the gas bag was by mistake 



15 

withdrawn much too soon, and he was but partially under its in- 
fluence when the tooth was extracted. He testified that he ex- 
perienced some pain, but not as much as usually attends the op- 
eration. As there was no other patient present, that the experi- 
ment might be repeated, and as several expressed their opinion 
that it was a humbug affair, (which, in fact, w^as all the thanks 
I got for this gratuitous service,) I accordingly left the next morn- 
ing for home. While in Boston I conversed with Drs. Charles To 
Jackson and W. T. G. Morton upon the subject, both of whom 
admitted it to be entirely new to them. Dr. Jackson expressed 
much surprise that severe operations could be performed without 
pain, and these are the individuals who claimed to be the in- 
ventors. 

When I commenced giving the gas, I noticed one very remark- 
able circumstance attending it, which was, that those who sat 
down resolving to have an operation performed under its influ- 
ence, had no disposition to exert the muscular system in the least, 
but would remain quiet as if partially asleep. Whereas, if the 
same individuals were to inhale the gas under any other circum- 
stances, it would seem impossible to restrain them from over ex- 
ertion. 

I would here remark, that when I was deciding what exhilara- 
ting agent to use for this purpose, it immediately occurred to me 
that it would be best to use nitrous oxyd gas, or sulphuric ether, 
I advised with Dr. Marcy, of this city, and by his advice I con- 
tinued to use the former, as being the least likely to do injury, 
although it was attended with more trouble in its prepa- 
ration. If Drs. Jackson and Morton claim that they are 
something else, I reply that it is the same in principle if not in 
name, and they cannot use anything which will produce more 
satisfactory results ; and I made these results known to both of 
these individuals more than a year since. 

After making the above statement of facts, I leave it for the 
public to decide to whom belongs the honor of the discovery. 

Yours, truly, 
HORACE WELLS, Surgeon Dentist 

Dr. Wells's first object in this paper was to present his own 
claims ; they were fresh and recent, and his mind was in a fit 
condition to appreciate them fully ; it is reasonable, therefore, to 
suppose that he presented them in all their length and breadth — 
and in it he does not pretend that he had ever used or tried sul- 
phuric ether as an anaesthetic agent. It is safe, therefore, to con- 
clude that he never had. His second object, connected with the 
first, was to depreciate the claims of Drs. Morton and Jackson, 
whom he then considered as his rivals. We see by his last para- 
graph, that he was aware that Dr. Morton was using sulphuric 
ether as an anaesthetic agent, but he does not pretend that it had 
ever been used by any other person for the like purpose. It is 



16 

safe, therefore, to conclude that it had not, within his knowledge. 
He says that he suggested it to Dr. Marcy, who advised against 
its use, so he continued the use of nitrous oxyd. This first paper 
is something nearer the time of his experiments, and also some- 
thing nearer the truth, than that published in Galignani^s Mes- 
senger — 3^et a careful examination of this will show that it is very 
far from containing a true presentation of the actual facts as they 
occurred. 

' Dr. Wells " took Ms idecC from Dr. Cooley. 

And, first. One, on reading that paper, would be led to suppose 
that Dr. Wells was brought to the opinion of the anaesthetic pro- 
perties of nitrous oxyd, and his choice of that element as a means 
of producing ansesthesia, by an elaborate process of inductive 
reasoning ; whereas, in truth, he took it from the suggestion of 
Dr. Samuel A. Cooley, maie to him during an exhibition of the 
" laughing gas." I repeat the paragraph of Dr. Wells's letter, 
that the evidence may be applied to it the more closely: 

" While reasoning from analogy, I was led to believe that the 
inhaling of any exhilarating gas, sufficient to cause a great ner- 
vous excitement, would so paralyze the system as to render it in- 
sensible to pain, or nearly so — for it is well known that when an 
individual is very much excited by passion, he scarcely feels the 
severe wound which may at the time be inflicted, and the indi- 
vidual who is said to be 'dead drunk' may receive severe blows, 
apparently without the least pain, and when in this state is much 
more tenacious of life than when in the natural state. I accord- 
ingly resolved to try the experiment of inhaling an exhilarating 
gas myself, for the purpose of having a tooth extracted. I then 
obtained some nitrous oxyd gas, and requested Dr. J. M. Riggs to 
perform the operation at the moment when I should give the sig- 
nal, resolving to have the tooth extracted before loosing all con- 
sciousness. This experiment proved to be perfectly successful — 
it was attended with no pain whatever. I then performed the 
same operation on twelve or fifteen others, with the same re- 
sults." 

On this particular point, in a deposition given at the request of 
the representatives of Dr. Wells, Dr. Cooley says : 

" State of Connecticut, ) 
County of Hartford. ) 
" I, Samuel A. Cooley, a citizen of Hartford, county of Hartford, 
State of Connecticut, depose and say, that on the evening of the 
10th day of December, in the year 1844, that one G. Q. Colton 
gave a public exhibition in the Union Hall in the said city of 
Hartford, to show the efiect produced upon the human system by 
the inhaling of nitrous oxj'd or laughing gas ; and, in accordance 
with the request of several gentlemen, the said Colton did give a 



17 

private exhibition on tbe morning of December II, 1844, at the 
said hall ; and that the deponent then inhaled a portion of said 
nitrous oxyd gas, to ascertain its peculiar effect upon his system 3 
and that there were present at that time the said Colton, Horace 
Wells, C. F. Colton, Benjamin Moulton, and several other gentle- 
men, to the deponent at this time unknown ; and that the said 
deponent, while under the influence of the said gas, did run against 
and throw down several of the settees in said hall, thereby throw- 
ing himself down, and causing several severe bruises upon his 
knees and other parts of his person ; and that, after the peculiar 
influence of said gas had subsided, his friends then present asked 
if he had not injured himself, and then directed his attention to 
the acts which he had committed unconsciously while under the 
operation of said gas. He then found by examination that his 
knees were severely injured ; and he then exposed his knees to 
those present, and found that the skin was severely abrased and 
broken; and that the deponent then remarked *that he believed 
that a person might get into a fight with several persons and not 
know when he was hurt, so unconscious was a person of paia 
while under the influence of the said gas ;' and the said deponent 
further remarked, * that he believed that if a person could be re- 
strained, that he could undergo a severe surgical operation with- 
out feeling any pain at the time.* Dr. Wells then remarked * that 
he believed that a person could have a tooth extracted while un- 
der its influence, and not experience any pain ;' and the said 
Wells further remarked *that he had a wisdom tooth that trou- 
bled him exceedingly, and if the said G. Q. Colton would fill his 
bag with some of the gas, ho would go up to his office and try 
the experiment,' which the said Colton did ; and the said Wells, 
C F. Colton, and G. Q. Colton, and your deponent, and others at 
this time unknown to said deponent, proceeded to the office of said 
Wells ; and that said Wells there inhaled the gas, and a tooth 
was extracted by Dr. Riggs, a dentist then present ; and that the 
said Wells, after the effect of the gas had subsided, exclaimed * A 
new era in tooth-pulling!'" 

On the same point G. Howell Olmstead, Jr., says : 
" In answer to your question, I would state that I wish to ren- 
der justice to all parties concerned. Having been connected in 
business with Dr. Wells, and being very intimate with him, we 
had a great many conversations together about the effect of the 
gas, and in those conversations he always told me he derived his 
first idea of the matter from remarks made by Dr. S. A. Cooley, 
at a private exhibition of laughing gas, given at the Union Hall, 
in this city, in the winter of 1844 or 45; and that, from those 
remarks, and what he witnessed himself, he immediately applied 
it to his own business." 

But enough of this, I do not use it to depreciate the experi- 
ments of Dr. Wells, for if the idea which he attempted to carry 
3 



18 

out, and the means used by him were really worth anything in 
his hands, it is of no importance where he got them, but I refer 
to It to show that his statement of his own case cannot be relied 
on for full and perfect accuracy. 

In his letter, published in Galignani's Messenger, of February 
17, 1847, he makes a still wider and less excusable departure 
from the strict and exact fact. After stating the discovery and 
the performance of an operation on himself and twelve or fifteen 
others, he says : 

" Being a resident of Hartford, Connecticut, (U. S.,) I proceeded 
to Boston the following month, (December,) in order to present 
my discovery to the medical faculty — first making it known to 
Drs. Warren, Hayward, Jackson and Morton, two last of whom 
subsequently published the same, without mention of our confer- 
ence. Since this discovery was first made I have administered 
nitrous oxyd gas and the vapor of ether to about fifty patients, 
my operations having been limited to this small number in con- 
sequences of a protracted illness which immediately ensued on 
my return home from Boston, in January, 1845." 

Now it is not at all true that either Dr. Jackson or Dr. Morton 
^^ published the same,^^ that is to say. Dr. Wells' discovery of, or 
experiments on the anaesthetic properties of nitrous oxyd, either 
with or without mentioning their conversation with him. But 
they published, as he well knew, a very different thing, a discovery 
which each of them claimed to have made ; namely — that sulphu- 
ric ether ivas a safe, certain, and efficient ancesthetic agent, and 
they each claimed, as his own, the introduction of the discovery 
into use, and approval with the medical profession. He seems 
willing also to convey the idea that he had used sulphuric ether 
as an anaesthetic agent prior to September 30, 1846, the date of 
Dr. Morton's public announcement of this discovery ; but, as I 
have already shown, it is not true that he did so. Dr. Wells 
says, in this paper, that his operations were limited to a small 
number of cases "in consequence of a protracted illness, which 
immediately ensued on my return home from Boston, in Janu- 
ary, 1845." This is not strictly true if it be given as the whole 
cause of his limited operations. 

J5r. Wells proclaims his experiment afailurey and abandons Ances- 

thesia. 

Dr. Samuel A. Cooley says that he conversed with him just 
after his return "from Boston, where he had made an experiment 
which had proved a failure." The witness says : 

" He then said to me that he was disappointed in the effects of 
the gas, and that it would not operate as we had hoped and 
thought it would, as there was no certainty to be placed upon it ; 
and, consequently, he should abandon it, as he had so much other 
business to attend to, and as the gas would not operate in all 
cases alike, and therefore could not be trusted." 



19 

So that, although he may have been ill, in the year 1845, he 
had made up his mind to abandon his supposed discovery as a 
failure, from the time of his unsuccessful experiment in Boston, 
until the wonderful success and eclat of Dr. Morton's anaesthetic 
agent, sulphuric ether, led him to hope that he would be able 
to contest with him the honor of the discovery. 

Mrs. Wells, who has testified in support of her deceased hus- 
band's claim, says : 

" For some months previous to the delivery of a course of chem- 
ical lectures by Mr. G. Q,. Colton, in the city of Hartford, Decem- 
ber, 1844, Dr. Wells had turned his attention to the discovery of 
some means of rendering the human sj^stem insensible to pain 
snder dental and surgical operations, and made several experi- 
monts in mesmerism with reference to that object." 

And P. D. Stillman says: 

"About the year 1844, I was frequently in Dr. Wells's room ; 
he was making experiments — some in mesmerism — also in gas." 

Success of Nitr^ous Oxyd dependent on Mesmerism. 

And it is well known that about that time the world was full 
of exactly that kind of experiment. Dr. Wells appears to have 
connected mesmerism in practice with the nitrous oxyd, making 
out of the elements of both the principal means by which he 
brought about whatever success he in fact attained. 

" When I commenced giving the gas, I noticed one very re- 
markable circumstance attending it, which was, that those who 
sat down resolving to have an operation performed under its in- 
fluence, had no disposition to exert the musclar system in the 
least, but would remain quiet as if partially asleep. Whereas, if 
the same individuals were to inhale the gas under any other cir- 
cumstances, it would seem impossible to restrain them from over 
exertion." 

And Dr. Marcy, one of the principal witnesses in support of 
Dr. Wells' claim, in his statement No. 4, speaking of one of Dr. 
Wells' experiments, says: 

" By this experiment, two important, and to myself, entirely 
new facts, were demonstrated: 1st, that the body could be ren- 
dered insensible to pain, by the inhalation of a gas or vapor, cap- 
able of producing certain effects upon the organism ; and 2d, 
when such agents were administered to a sufficient extent, for a 
definite object, and with a suitable impression being previously 
produced upon the mind, that no unusual mental excitement, or 
attempts at physical effort, would follow the inhalation." 

And there is no doubt whatever that in slight operations, such 
as those of dentistry, that the mentally prepared patient, who has 
a right understanding with the operator, can by the force of im- 



20 

agination and a strong effort of the will greatl}' modify the pro- 
per physical effect of an agent such as this. Hence the undoubt- 
ed success in many cases of mesmerism when used alone in sur- 
gical operations. 

That Dr. Wells had a fall appreciation of this great philosophic 
truth is clear, from his parting advice to Dr. Cooley, from whose 
insensibility to pain when under the influence of the "laughing 
gas," he originally obtained his conception of ancBsthesia. Dr. 
Cooley in his second statement says, in reference to a partnership 
into which he and' Dr. Wells had entered — 

" Ans. 6. The first intimation I had that Dr. Wells did not in- 
tend to carry out our partnership arrangement with me, was 
when he informed me, several weeks after this arrangement was 
entered into between us, that he had just returned from Boston, 
where he had made a public experiment which had proved a fail- 
ure. He then said to me that he was disappointed in the effects 
of the gas, and that it would not operate as we had hoped and 
thought it would, as there was no certainty to be placed upon it ; 
and, consequently, he should abandon it, as he had so much other 
business to attend to, and as the gas would not operate in all 
cases alike, and therefore could not be trusted. He advised me 
to go on with my exhibitions, and thought I could make money 
out of them, and that, although he had got through with his ex- 
periments in the business, he would assist me in any way he 
could, in or.ier that I might succeed in my lectures ; and suggest- 
ed to me to connect with my lectures and administering the gas, 
mesmerism, and the use of a card of questions which he had pre- 
pared — so arranged that a correct answer could be given, by a 
person in an adjoining room, as to the time of day, &c., by the 
particular manner in which the question was asked. Feeling 
some confidence that by following his suggestions ] should realize 
sufficient from the lectures to reimburse me for my time and ex- 
penses while in company with him, the matter was then dropped 
between us, and 1 pursued my lectures." 

And it is not at all surprising, that an anaesthetic agent, which 
required for its successful exhibition mesmeric or other mental 
preparation of the patient, should fail when tested in the Medi- 
cal Hospital of Massachusetts. Dr. Kiggs expresses the opinion, 
in one of his numerous siatemeiits, that if the Medical Hospital, 
which does so much honor to the city of Boston, had, with all its 
learned Professors, been placed in Hartford, Dr. Wells would have 
been the recognised discoverer of anaesthesia; and nitrous oxyd 
would have been the great anaesthetic agent. It strikes me as 
much more probable, if that noble institution, with its learned 
professors, had been in Hartford, that the nitrous oxyd, if it had 
appeared for a moment, as an anaesthetic agent, would not have 
lived out iis one short month, but that it would at an earlier day 
have met the fate which it did meet at its firsi: appearance in that 
hospital. Dr. Wells testifies to the kindness and attention of the 



21 

Professors. Dr. Morton aided him with his instruments in his 
experiments, and there can be no just pretence of partiality or 
unfairness. His experiment there, by his own admission, was a 
failure, and he therefore determined to abandon the use of this 
gas as uncertain and unreliable. 

Dr. Wells notoriously relinquishes his experiments in January, 1845. 

That he did abandon it is understood. His first publication af- 
ter he returned from Europe, March 30, 1847, does not claim to 
have used it after his failure in Boston, but apologizes for his 
omission to do so. He says : 

"The question is asked, why so much time has elapsed since 
its first discovery, without its coming into more general use, I can 
only say, that I have used my utmost endeavors, from the first, to 
influence physicians and surgeons to make a trial of it, assuring 
them that my operations were numerous, and perfectly success- 
ful. But all were fearful of doing some serious injury with it ; 
and not wishing to incur the responsibility of administering this 
powerful agent without the co-operation of the medical faculty, 
and also for the reason that I was obliged to relinquish my pro- 
fessional business in consequence of ill health, my operations have 
been somewhat limited." 

Dr. Wells was afraid to administer the nitrous oxyd without 
the "co-operation of the medical faculty." But they would not 
co-operate. Of them he says: ^^ All were fearful of doing some 
serious injury with it^ That is true. So they were, and so they 
would be now if its use were again proposed. The medical fac- 
ulty are, as a body, cautious, but not timid. They were afraid to 
use nitrous oxyd, lest they should do serious injury with it ; but 
they were not afraid to use sulphuric ether when its anaesthetic 
qualities were made known to them. They received the an- 
nouncement of its discovery with shouts of exultation ; there was 
an end o^ pain, and end of mesmerism as a pain subduing agent ; 
and it was at once received into universal uso by the medical 
faculty. 

And the witnesses speak of it as a thing understood, that Dr. 
Wells ceased his experiments and gave up the pursuit until after 
the time the discovery of Dr. Morton had obtained universal use 
and celebrity. 

Dr. Ellsworth, speaking of his failure in Boston in the winters 
of 1844-5, says: 

" He presented it to Dr. Warren, who laid it before his class, 
but the experiment first attempted partially failing, and no one 
seeming willing to lend him an helping hand, he ceased making 
any further personal efforts." 

Dr. Cooley says: 

" I knew of Dr. Wells going to Boston, soon after the noise in 
the papers of the discovery of the effects of ether by you. in 1846, 



22 

and had a conversation with him, on his return, abont your dis- 
covery. He made no claim to me of the discovery being his ; but, 
on the contrary, expressrd regrets that we had not continued our 
experiments to a successful termination." 

Howell Olmstead, junr., says : 

"During the winter of 1845 and spring of 1846, Dr. Wells 
made application for a patent for a ' shower bath,* in his name, 
which Col. Thos. Roberts claimed to be equally interested in. 
Their respective claim was left to the decision of Francis Parson, 
Esq., of this city, and decided in Dr. Wells' favor. I then made 
arrangements with Dr. Wells to travel and dispose of rights to 
manufacture his baths, and at that time I considered that he had 
abandoned the thing entirely, as he expressed himself to me that 
the operation in some cases proved a perfect failure, and spoke of 
his unsuccessful trial in Boston in 1845. * * * * 

"About this time the effects of ether had become public in 
Boston, and he expressed himself as being very sorry that he had 
not prosecuted his experiments to a successful termination ; and 
he also regretted his stopping the matter when he did, for he 
thought an immense fortune might be made out of the business, 
and that the discovery would reflect great honor upon the dis- 



Dr. Wells cordially recognises Dr. Morton's discovery. 

It is very certain too, that Dr. Wells, at the time Dr. Mortop's 
discovery was communicated to him, and thereafter, until the as- 
sured success of that discovery astonished, and overwhelmed him, 
recognised the kind and friendly acts of Dr. Morton toward him- 
self, and did not conceive himself injured by Dr. Morton's having 
made and claimed the honor of discovering a safe and practical 
anaesthetic agent. Witness his letter to Dr. Morton of October, 
1846, in reply to one of Dr. Morton, informing him of his dis- 
covery and his advice to Dr. Morton, given in the presence of 
R. H. Eddy. They are as follows : 

" Hartford, Connecticut, October 20, 1 846. 
"Dr. Morton — Dear Sir : Your letter dated yesterday, is just 
received, and I hasten to answer it, for I fear you will adopt a 
method in disposing of your rights, which will defeat your object. 
Before you make any arrangements whatever, I wish to see you, 
I think I will be in Boston the first of next week — probably 
Monday night. If the operation of administering the gas is not 
attended v/ith too much trouble, and will produce the effect you 
state, it will, undoutedly, be a fortune to you, provided ic is 
rightly managed. 

" Yours, in haste, H. WELLS." 



23 

Here follows the statement of R. H. Eddy, Esq., as to the inter- 
view between Drs. Morton and Wells : 

Interview between Drs. Morton and Wells. 

"Boston, February 17, 1847. 
"R. H. Dana, Esq — Bear Sir: In reply to your note of this 
morning, I have to state that about the time I was engaged in 
preparing the papers for the procural of the patent, in the United 
States, on the discovery of Dr. Morton for preventing pain in sur- 
gical operations, by the inhalation of the vapor of sulphuric ether, 
I was requested by Dr. Morton to call at his office to have an in- 
terview with the late Dr. Horace Wells, who was then on a visit 
to this city, and who. Dr. Morton thought, might be able to render 
him valuable advice and assistance in regard to the mode of dis- 
posing of privileges to use the discovery. Accordingly I had an 
interview with Dr. Wells. During such meeting we conversed 
freely on the discovery, and in relation to the experiments Dr, 
Wells had been witness to in the office of Dr. Morton. The de- 
tails of our conversation I do not recollect sufficiently to attempt 
to relate them, but the whole of it, and the manner of Dr. Wells 
at the time, led me, in no respect, to any suspicion that he (Dr, 
Wells) had ever before been aware of the then discovered effect 
of ether in annuling pain during a surgical operation. Dr. Wells 
doubted the ability of Dr. Morton to procure a patent — not on the 
ground that he (Dr. Morton) was not the first and original dis- 
coverer, but that he (Dr. Wells) believed the discovery was not 
a legal subject for a patent. He advised him, however, to make 
application for one, and to dispose of as many licenses as he could 
while such application might be pending ; in fact, to make as 
much money out of the discovery as he could, while the excite- 
ment in regard to it might last. I must confess that when, some 
time afterwards, I heard of the pretensions of Dr. Wells to be con- 
sidered the discoverer of the aforementioned effect of ether, I was 
struck with great surprise, for his whole conversation with me, at 
the time of our interview, led me to the belief that he fully and 
entirely recognized the discovery to have been made by Dr. Mor- 
ton, or at least partly by him and partly by Dr. C. T. Jackson, as 
I then supposed. 

" Respectfully yours, 

R.'H. EDDY." 

From this letter, and from the conversation above detailed, it 
is clear that Dr. Wells not only did not feel himself wronged by 
Dr. Morton, but that he did not think himself in possession of an 
available anassthetic agent. He could not fail to know, and on 
his return home he declarded he did know that Dr. Morton's 
"compound" was sulphuric ether, and his conversation on this 
occasion also shows that he did not then claim to have been the 
discoverer of its application as an ansesthetic agent. 



M 

Further recognition of Dr. Morton^s discovery by Dr. Wells, 

It shows, a]so, that he thought Dr. Morton's discovery as well 
as his own, a humbug, though he does not say so. He was ap- 
prised that Dr. Morton w^as about to apply for a patent, and be 
did not believe he would get one. He advised him to sell licen- 
ses while his application was pending, and make as much money 
out of it as he could while the excitement lasted — very like the 
advice which he gave to Dr. Cooley as to the use he should make 
of the nitrous oxyd. He was evidently impressed with the belief 
that the success of Dr. Morton's anaesthetic agent depended, also, 
to some extent, on the mental preparation of the patients. 

Dr. Wells and friends lose all confidence in Nitrous Oxyd. 

But I am prepared to shov^, beyond all cavil, that neither Dr. 
Wells nor Dr. Riggs, nor Dr. Marcy, had any confidence in nitrous 
oxyd as an anaesthetic agent. They did not believe it to be efficient^ 
and at the same time, safe. They had used it only in dental ope- 
rations prior to the discovery of Dr. Morton, and they were satis- 
fied, that in those operations, it ought not to be used. 

The Hon. James Dixon, an intelligent man — a member of Con- 
gress, and the friend and advocate of Dr. Wells, thus testifies : 

Ques. Did you ever have a conversation with Dr. Wells in 
regard to the use of nitrous oxyd, in which he discouraged its use 
by you in having teeth extracted ; if so, state fully the conversa- 
tion ? 

Ans. I had repeated conversations with Riggs and Wells. 
Think both said that for so slight an operation as pulling teeth 
they would not advise its use, but that in severe surgical opera- 
tions, as amputation, it should be used, but in slight operations it 
was not best to run the risk of using the gas. 

Mr. Dixon was a man whose life and health were of value, 
it would not do, therefore, to overdose him with nitrous oxyd, lest 
it should superinduce asphyxia. He was an intelligent man, who 
could not by previous mental discipline be induced to feel no 
pain, or pretend that he felt none, under the influence of a 
moderate and safe inhalation ; those gentlemen, therefore, both 
advised him, and I have no doubt honestly and well, that "in 
slight operations" as pulling of teeth, "it was not best to run the 
risk of using the gas," and there was not much probability of his 
calling on them to administer it "in a severe surgical operation,'* 
but if he had so called, I have no doubt they would both, as hon- 
estly, and more decisively, have advised him against its use. 
Indeed, in some few cases, in slight operations, and on probably 
peculiar constitutions, the operation of the gas appears to have 
been successful and innocent. But we have here the distinct 
avowal of both Drs. Wells and Riggs, that they did not consider 
it generally so, but thought its effects ought not to be hazarded 



25 

except in severe surgical operations. Why did they not tell all 
their customers so? If they had done this the writer of the 
" Examination" might, with some show of propriety, have talked 
of their "sincerity, rectitude, truth, and honor." 

Entertaining the opinions which they did entertain, and which, 
when consulted by an intelligent man and a friend, they both ex- 
pressed, how could these men hold out the false pretence which 
they were then holding out to the public? How dare they ad- 
minister their dangerous nostrum to patients, who, though per- 
haps poor and ignorant, have human feelings and human souls, 
and who relied the more fully because of their own want of 
knowledge, on the truth of their physicians, and trusted their own 
lives and health, and the lives and health of their wives and chil- 
dren the more implicitly in their hands? It seems, however, that 
they could do so, and yet, in the opinion of the writer of the 
" Examination," be men of "sincerity, rectitude, truth, and honor." 

Mr. Dixon was not mistaken in his recollection, nor is he, on 
another occasion, much nearer the time of its occurrence, detailed 
a similar conversation with Dr. Wells to Mr. Edward Warren, 
who testifies to it as follows : 

Further proof that Dr. Wells had abandoned the use of Nitrous 

Oxyd. 

" 1st. Do you recollect a conversation in Washington with Hon. 
James Dixon ? When and what was it ? 

" Ans. While in Washington, endeavoring to induce our Gov- 
ernment to introduce this discovery into the army in Mexico, and 
after getting the matter referred to a select committee of the 
House of Representatives, I learned with some surprise, that the 
Hon. James Dixon, a member of Congress Irom Connecticut, and 
townsman of Dr. Wells, had sent in a sort of informal protest to 
the committee's further proceedings, until a constituent of his. Dr. 
Wells, had furnished certain testimony in his favor. This was 
early in January. I immediately called on Mr. Dixon, who stated 
that Dr. Wells had requested his assistance, and had promised to 
furnish him certain evidence of his claims; but, having gone to 
Europe without procuring it, he did not think it would arrive at 
all, and, if not by a certain day, then near at hand, he would aid 
me in my efforts; at the same time saying, as near as I can recol- 
lect, that, about two years before, he had heard that Dr. Wells 
was making some experiments with nitrous oxyd gas, to prevent 
pain in extracting teeth; that, having a severe toothache, he 
called on him, proposing to take this gas, but that Dr. Wells in- 
formed him that, after giving it to thirteen or fourteen patients, 
with only partial success, he had abandoned its use as dangerous, 
and dissuaded him from resorting to it." 



26 

. Nitrous Oxyd discredited as an AncBstJietic agent by Dr, WelWs 

experiments. 

Dr. Marcy, with whom Dr. Wells counselled much, and who 
operated in and reported the operation on the scirrous testicle 
above referred to, under the influence of the nitrous oxyd, and 
certifies to the success of the operation, entertained the same 
opinion with Doctors Wells and Riggs. He did not believe that 
nitrous oxyd was at the same time safe and efficacious as an 
anaesthetic agent. In an article published in the Journal of Com- 
merce, December 30, 1846, when the medical world was active 
with Dr. Morton's discovery, he says : 

"My own opinion in regard to the use of the nitrous oxyd gas, 
the sulphuric ether, or an other stimulant, which acts upon the 
system in such a manner as to render the body insensible to ex- 
ternal impressions, is, that it is decidedly unsafe, and that in no 
given case can we be certain that it will not cause congestion of 
the brain or lungs. I have known the use of both the first named 
articles to give rise to temporary congestion of the brain and in- 
sanity." 

He was so well satisfied that nitrous oxyd w^as a failure, that 
be could have no faith in any ancesthetic agent. 

The state of the discovery then stands thus: On the 7th day of 
December, 1846, two months after Dr. Morton's announcement. Dr. 
Wells claims to have administered the nitrous oxyd as an anaesthe- 
tic agent in twelve or fifteen ordinary cases of dentistry, at Hart- 
ford. He formed the opinion, and he expressed it to the Hon. Mr. 
Dixon, that it was dangerous and ought not to be used in such slight 
cases. His nearest and most intimate friend and supporter. Dr. 
Riggs, expressed the same opinion. Dr. Wells had tried it once 
in the Medical Hospital of Boston — it proved a failure. On 
his return to Hartford he told Dr. Cooley, with whom he had 
agreed to form a partnership lor its use, that "it would not ope- 
rate as we hoped and thought it would, as there was no certainty 
to be placed in it ; and consequently he should abandon its use," 
and he did abandoned it and go into other business ; dealing in 
patents for sifters for coal ashes ; bath-tubs, and finally deal- 
ing in pictures. Not more than one or two cases of his use of the 
nitrous oxyd in tooth pulling is even doubtfully proved after his 
return from Boston, in the winter of 1844-45 ; and except in the 
case of his exhibition at Boston he had never extended its use be- 
yond the circle of his own friends in the city of Hartford ; and 
if he, or any of the small circle of friends who took their opin- 
ions on the subject from him, thought or said anything about 
sulphuric ether^ it was merely to pronounce it inferior to nitrous 
oxyd for the purpose of anaesthesia. 

Now let us suppose that all he did, and all he thought, and 
what he said on this subject to his confidential friends, as far as we 
have been able to gather it from the evidence, had been laid at 



27 

once before the medical profession of America and Europe, 
would they have received it ; would they have been justified in re- 
ceiving it as a discovery of practical anaesthetic qualities in ni- 
trous oxyd? Would they, as the professional and trusted protec- 
tors and preservers of human life and human health have been 
justified in bringing it at once into general use in their practice ? 
A negative answer to these questions, and a negative they must 
have, answers away Dr. Wells' claim. Anaesthesia generally 
had gained nothing by his experiments, they did not stand as well 
as the reported experiments of Mr. Daunol with the ingredients 
of the spongi somnifera. Nitrous oxyd did not stand as well in 
his hands as it did when it came out of the hands of Sir Hum- 
phry Davy. Dr. Wells did not prove that nitrous oxyd was a 
safe, certain, and efficient ancBsthetic agent, and he did not reason- 
ably satisfy the medical profession that it was so. On the con- 
trary, he proved to his own satisfaction that it was not either 
certain, efficient, or safe, and the only instance in which he pre- 
sented it to a medical public out of his own circle of private 
friends was that in the Medical Hospital at Boston, where it was 
considered a '' humbug. ^^ This is all that Dr. Wells had done for 
anaesthesia prior to the discovery by Dr. Morton; and the public an- 
nouncement of that discovery, and its universal and enthusiastic 
reception by the learned medical faculties of Europe and America. 

Attempt to rival Sulphuric Ether by a revival of Nitrous Oxyd. 

Subsequent to that time a faint effort was made by Doctor 
Wells and a few of his professional friends in Hartford, to revive 
the use of nitrous oxyd as an anaesthetic agent — to extend its 
use and make it a rival to sulphuric ether — evidently with the 
hope of being able to connect subsequent experiments, if they 
could make them successful, with the past, which so far failed 
that they were abandoned, and of the two to make out the first 
available discovery. Dr. Cooley in answer to interogatories, says : 

"Ques. You say, moreover, that you administered gas when 
requested so to do by surgeons and dentists. Was not this sub- 
sequent to the ether discovery ? 

" Ans. 8. Yes, it was after the ether discovery, in 1846, that I 
administered the gas for surgeons and dentists — there then being 
an attempt, by us all, to renew the experiments, as the public and 
ourselves had lost confidence and doubted the practicability of the 
thing, until the successful introduction of ether. I administered 
gas for Dr. Ellsworth, an intimate friend of Wells, and also to 
several others." 

Second failures of Dr. Wells in attempting to introduce Nitrous 

Oxyd. 

The first attempt of which we have any proof, beyond the 
slight operation of pulling teeth, for which Dr. Wells had, as al- 
ready shown, condemned its use, was by Dr. E. Marcy, on the 



m 

17th of August, 1847. He pronounces the operation successful. 
It was in its nature a very brief one — the removal of a scirrous 
testicle. This patient, he says, did, at the first incision, manifest 
some pain, but afterv^^ards, till the operation ended, there was not 
the slightest consciousness. Dr. Wells administered the gas. 
The object of the experiment with the ^as^ was to make it a 
rival of sulphuric ether ^ already established in the profession. It 
was intended to make and prove a case — a foregone conclusion in 
the minds of all present except the subject of the operation ; from 
him we hear nothing. If prudence had dictated it, his certificate 
or affidavit might have been taken ; but it was not. Dr. Taft, 
however, forgetting the slight manifestation of pain testified to 
by Dr. Marcy, says the part was removed without pain to the 
patient. 

The next in the order of time, is the case of Goodale, whose 
thigh was amputated by Dr. Ellsworth on the 1st of January, 
1848, in the presence of Drs. Hall and Hawley. Dr. Wells 
administered the gas. 

Dr. Ellsworth commences his report of the case with an apology: 
"The lad was in a very unpleasant state of mind, being greatly 
alarmed at the number of persons standing round, yet ten or 
twelve inspirations rendered him perfectly quiet." He had sen- 
sation during the sawing of the bone, but Dr. Ellsworth thinks it 
was not pain. The effect of the gas went off* before the opera- 
tion was completed; the lad complained bitterly, and the gas had 
to be again administered, which made him quiet. On the whole, 
Dr. Ellsworth thinks it a favorable operation. 

Dr. Hall says, " the boy during the operation was entirely quiet^^ 
and he thinks the operation " very successful." In this he does 
not agree with Dr. Ellsworth, unless in his opinion the whole 
operations consisted in lopping off* the limb. Dr. Hawley says 
" this operation was performed with, apparently, little suffering 
by the boy; and on inquiry after the operation, he replied that he 
felt no pain when the limb was amputated." The boy's certifi- 
cate or affidavit was not originally taken by Dr. Wells, but he 
was afterwards examined in behalf of Dr. Morton, and testified 
as follows : 

Ques. What is your residence, age, and occupation ? 

Ans. I reside in East Hartford, my age nineteen years, am a 
cigar maker. 

Ques. Have you had a leg amputated, by whom and when, and 
was anything administered to you to prevent pain, if yea, when 
and by whom ? 

Ans. I had a leg amputated by Dr. Ellsworth, I think 1st of 
January, 1848 ; something was given me to prevent pain by Dr. 
Wells, I inhaled it from a bag. 

Ques. How many times did you inhale from the bag ? 

Ans. Twice. 

Ques. Will you state whether Ellsworth requested Dr. Wells 
to give it again because you were in much pain ? 



29 

Ans. He did. 

Qiies. What did Dr. Wells say when Dr. Ellsworth requested 
him to give more gas? 

Ans. He said he thought it would not be best as I was too 
weak to have any more. 

Ques. Did Dr. Wells decline giving any more.i' 

Ans. He did. 

His deposition was again taken in behalf of Dr. Wells' repre- 
sentatives January 25, 1853, and is as follovi^s: 

Deposition of Henry A. Goodale, of Hartford, Connecticut. 

"I, Henry A. Goodale, of Hartford, being of lawful age, depose 
and say : That I resided in East Hartford in 1848, at which time, 
on the 1st January, my leg was cut off by Dr. Ellsworth in the 
presence of Dr. E. Hall, Dr. H. Weils, Henry Kilbourn, and others, 
but I do not remember who at the exact time of the operation. 
Dr. Wells gave the gas out of a large bag. I was afraid in first 
to take the gas, but final iy was pursuaded so to do. Do not remem- 
ber being taken up and brought to the edge of the bed. Remember 
seeing the knife, but not until the operation was over. Do not 
remember when the knife entered the flesh, did not remember 
when the knife was cut out, think 1 felt a kind of jar when the 
bone was sawed. Do not remember when Dr. Ellsworth cut off 
the large nerve, but remember taking gas several times. Was not 
sensible of suffering during the cutting and sawing. When Dr. 
E. began to sew up the wound it hurt me a great deal, and I 
asked for the gas, do not know whether more was given or not. 
I felt pain after the leg was taken off while it was being dressed, 
and after I was put back into bed. Do not think that I felt any 
pain until the leg was off. Am sure I was a great deal better off 
for taking the gas, than I should have been otherwise. 1 think 
the gas was given twice and refused once when I asked for it. I 
think some one said 1 was too weak to bear any more ; this was 
while the stitches weie being taken. Do not remember with cer- 
tainty who said I was too weak. I stated in a former deposition, 
if I remember right, in reply to the question, "whether 1 expe- 
rienced pain during the whole operation," that 1 did. I think this 
has been misunderstood, for I did not mean that 1 experienced 
pain continually during the operation, but merely that during the 
operation there was a time when J experienced pain, and that 
was during the dressing and tying the arteries, meaning the time 
afier the leg was removed, but not the whole time when Dr. E. 
began to cut until ttie stump was done up, but only during the 
part as before expressed toward the close, during the dressing and 
tying the arteries". 

••HENRY A. GOODALE." 
H irrford, January 25, 1853. 

Sworn before H. L. RIDER, N. F. 



30 

The whole case, as reported and proved, shows what may be 
not inaptly called a bungling operation. The anaesthesia was 
imperfect, and not continuous — the boy had sensation and suf- 
fered pain — and Dr. Wells was evidently afraid, and with good 
reason, so to administer the gas as to make insensibility perfect, 
and he dared not continue it to the close of the operation. 

The next and last case was that of Mary Gabriel, to whom Dr. 
Wells administered " the gas," and from whose right shoulder Dr. 
S. B. Berresford removed a fatty tumor weighing 6^ ounces. We 
have the affidavit of the patient: a perfect state of ansBSthesia 
was produced, closely bordering on asphyxia, and she felt no 
pain ; but Dr. Berresford, who is evidently a friendly though an 
honest witness, testifies thus : 

Ques. Was the above operation as successful and satisfactory 
as any you have ever performed with any other anaesthetic agent ? 

Ans. It was quite as successful as any, so far as destroying sen- 
sibility was concerned. 

Ques. You say the operation you have spoken of was quite as 
successful as any you ever performed, so far as destroying sensi- 
bility was concerned. In what was the operation not as suc- 
cessful? 

Ans. The patient was very faint and depressed' for about half 
an hour after recovering her perception. 

Ques. Was not the administration of the gas in this case at- 
tended with asphyxia? 

Ans. I think not. 

Ques. What v/as the appearance of the face of the patient? 

Ans. At this distance of time I cannot remember, to speak with 
precision. 

Ques. Have you any idea that Dr. Wells ever perfected, and 
brought into general use, nitrous oxyd gas as an anaesthetic agent 
in surgical operations? 

Ans. No, sir ; I do not think he did. 

Ques. Is nitrous oxyd, in your judgment, a valuable anaesthetic 
agent in surgical operations ? 

Ans. I have never used it, but in the case above alluded to, and 
give a decided preference to chloroforn, in surgical operations. 

Dr. Berresford saw the danger of the inhalation of nitrous 
oxyd until anaesthesia became perfect ; and although he thinks 
asphyxia was not produced in this case, yet he never used the 
nitrous oxyd again, nor did any one else — that was the end of its 
career as an anaesthetic agent. It had run the race of its second 
revival, and was a second time discredited and abandoned. 

The proof of this is inherent in the transaction itself, as I have 
briefly sketched it; but there is also extrinsic evidence of the 
fact. 



31 

Cyrrel Bullock says : 

Ques. Have you ever seen nitrous oxyd administered for the 
purpose of extracting teeth 1 If yea, about vi^hat time, by whom, 
and where, and was it successful ? 

Ans. I have, about the year 1846 or 1847, at the house of Mr. 
P. Holt, in this city, by S. A. Cooley. It was not successful. It 
was administered that I might extract some teeth, but it did not 
produce insensibility, and I did not extract the teeth. 

Ques. What was the effect produced on the patient ? 

Ans. She appeared wild and restless. 

Dr. Cooley says : 

" The last time that I exhibited it was to a lady at Dr. Green- 
leaf's office, which, in a great measure, proved a failure, and then 
ether and chloroform assumed the place of the gas, and opera- 
tions were more successful in the use of them ; and since then I 
have had but little to do with the matter, as other business has 
taken up my time and attention." 

And Dr. Greenleaf says of that exhibition ; 

Ques. Have you ever made use of nitrous oxyd gas in your den- 
tal business, to prevent pain in extracting teeth ? 

Ans. No, sir. 

Ques. Have you ever seen it administered ; and, if so, by whom, 
and where ? 

Ans. I saw it administered once, by Dr. S. A. Cooley, which 
produced vomiting. This was at my office. 

Ques. V/as the experiment entirely unsuccessful ? 

Ans. Yes. 

And this was the end. 

I have thus hastily sketched sihe process of reasoning which has 
brought me to the opinion which I have already announced, as to the 
respective claims of Dr. Wells and Dr. Morton, to the honor of hav- 
ing given to his country and the world a safe, certain, and efficient 
anaesthetic agent. I could have wished to go more fully and 
minutely into the examination of the question, but the near ap- 
proach of the close of the session, and the consequent pressure of 
business upon me, admonish me that I must have done. And I 
am gratified to be able to refer, in support of the leading opinion 
which I have expressed, to the appended memorial signed by a 
list of names in the medical and surgical profession which would 
do honor to any age or any country. 

Refutation of personal abuse in the "Examination.^^ 

Before concluding, however, justice demands a vindication of 
the character of Dr. Morton, libelled and villified as it is by the 
author of the " Examination," and of this I will merely say : 

That the IXth head of the publication and the statements there- 
in contained, so far as they impeach the integrity and propriety of 



32 

the conduct of Dr. Morton, or impute to him an attempt to silence 
the Wells claim by money, are false. Of this I am assured by the 
persons whose names are vouched to substantiate the charges; 
but as it will, doubtless, be a subject of future investigation, it is 
not my province to enter upon it, even did time permit. 

Equally false are the assertions in the "Examination," that the 
letter from Dr. Wells, dated October 20, 1846, was improperly 
obtained from him, and then printed in 1852, from a copy fur- 
nished by Dr. Morton, which differed in a material point from the 
original. His letter itself, was filed by the representatives of Dr. 
Wells, from which the copy in the report was printed, the com- 
mittee themselves comparing it with the proof sheets. 

Another paragraph, on page 80, shows that the writer entirely 
lost sight of the truth, in attempts to invest his arguments with spu- 
rious strength, derived from an unhallowed alliance with slander- 
ous invective. Dr. Wells, we are informed, " perished by his own 
hand, in a paroxysm of insanity, induced, as many of his friends 
believe, by the excitement and irritation of this controversy with 
Morton." Now, files of the New York papers show that the un- 
fortunate man cotumitted suicide in a prison cell, to which he had 
been committed for throwing vitriol upon the daughters of shame 
who promenade Broadway. Yet his death is now unhesitatingly 
laid at the door of Dr. Morton, with an envenomed effrontery 
rarely witnessed, which has invited this statement of unfortunate 
truths. 

In this same paragraph, after having thus outrageously defied 
the die rates of truth and respect to the memory of the dead, the 
writer indulges in one of the phantasies which his partisan ima- 
gination delights to conjure up. "Dr. Wells," we are informed, 
"did not live to receive the cheering news of the final recognition 
of his claims by the highest medical authority of Europe." What 
was this tribunal? The Institute of France, (which aw^arded to 
Dr. Morton its largest gold medal) — the famed Medical College at 
Paris — or one of the similar institutions in other large cities ? Not 
at all. We find on the preceding page a statement that the recog- 
nition came trom the "Parisian Medical Society" — a simple un- 
chartered societ)^ formed a few years since by English and Ameri- 
can students, (with a few exceptions,) who united themselves in 
a foreign land to rehearse their exploits at the dissecting table, 
and to accustom themselves to converse about their profession. 
And it is this social club which the author of the "Examina- 
tion" magjiifies into "the highest medical authority in Europe." 
Arguments like these, which have no foundation save in the posi- 
tive imagination of their coiner, show the real weakness of iho 
cause they are intended to sustain, backed by gross libels and de- 
famatory charges. 

It is in vain to attempt success by depreciating the character 
or capacity of Dr. Morton. He is recognised wherever known, 
as a man of integrity and honor, of great enterprise and of high 



33 

capacity. Conscious of his original claim to this glorious discov- 
ery, he has decidedly asserted his rights when necessary, amidst 
sore bufFettings of fortune, and the close-cleaving malignity of 
powerful adversaries, certain that he would eventually receive a 
universal recognition of his position. Institutions, learned men, 
and able jurists, both at home and abroad, have gradually united 
in awarding to him the glory of a discovery that will solace his 
declining years, and impart to his memory a hallowed radiance, 
as a benefactor of the human race. He proposed to the select 
committee (as his printed memorials on the files of the Senate 
show) a projet of the bill now reported, referring the subject to the 
decision of a judicial tribunal, and has ever avowed his readiness — 
in the noble language of De Foe — "to stand or fall by the public 
justice of his native land." 



